Takeaways:
- NAR said single-family home prices increased in 93 percent of markets during the second quarter.
- Nineteen metro areas saw double-digit increases in the second quarter.
- The average supply during 2Q was 5.1 months, a decrease from the 5.5 months NAR reported in 2Q 2014.
The strong seller’s market we have seen this summer season, and the impact it is having on housing inventory, is steadily pushing up home prices, according to the latest quarterly report by the National Association of Realtors.
The association said single-family home prices increased in 93 percent of markets during the second quarter. A majority of metropolitan areas — 163 out of 176, to be specific — saw gains during the quarter when comparing results with the same period last year.
By comparison, during the first quarter, NAR reported that price gains were recorded in 85 percent of metro areas. Nineteen metro areas saw double-digit increases in the second quarter.
The national median existing single-family home price in the second quarter, NAR said, was $229,000, up 8.2 percent from the median price of $212,000 reported in second-quarter 2014.
NAR economist Lawrence Yun attributed the rise in housing demand to steady rent increases, a slower-than-expected rise in mortgage rates and stronger local job markets. However, “while this led to a boost in sales paces not seen since before the downturn, overall supply failed to keep up and pushed prices higher in a majority of metro areas,” Yun said.
There were 2.3 million existing homes available for sale at the end of the second quarter, a slight increase above the 2.29 million homes for sale at the end of the same quarter last year. But the average supply during the second quarter was 5.1 months, a decrease from the 5.5 months NAR reported in second-quarter 2014.
“The ongoing rise in home values in recent years has greatly benefited homeowners by increasing their household wealth. In the meantime, inequality is growing in America because the downward trend in the homeownership rate means these equity gains are going to fewer households,” Yun warned.
