DENVER >> The home buying season began in March with a 33.4 percent jump in sales from February among the 53 metro areas surveyed for the RE/MAX National Housing Report, which is a little better than the 31-percent seven-year average of February to March increases. March sales were also 3.6 percent greater than sales one year ago.
“March is marking a strong kick-off for this year’s home selling season. After a long winter, demand for homes remains high, with large numbers of home buyers coming into the market. Last year was one of the best years in real estate in a long time, and March sales are pushing even higher. Low inventory is still a stubborn issue in many markets, but overall it doesn’t seem to be moving prices significantly higher,” said Dave Liniger, RE/MAX CEO, chairman of the board and co-founder.
So far in 2016, the average year-over-year increase in home sales has been 4.9 percent. The median price among the median sales prices of the markets in the survey in March was $204,000, which was the same median price reported in March 2015. The inventory of homes for sale remains tight in many markets across the country, with March seeing a level that is 13.3 percent lower than a year ago, the exact same difference seen in February. At the rate of home sales in March, the national months supply of inventory was 3.2, down from 3.7 in March 2015.
“It’s not always easy for homeowners to keep their finger on the pulse of their equity. This data shows homes have continued to increase in value since the depths experienced after the last recession. Those increases mean far fewer Americans have negative equity in their homes. This increases their mobility and is a positive development for all segments of the housing market,” Bob Walters, Quicken Loans chief economist, said.
Closed transactions — Year-over-year change
Like February, March home sales appeared to be especially strong in the northeast, in cities like Boston, Massachusetts; Providence, Rhode Island and Hartford, Connecticut. Across the nation in March, 37 of the 53 metro areas surveyed reported higher sales on a year-over-year basis, with 10 experiencing double-digit increases.
Median sales price
With an unchanged year-over-year median price of $204,000, March is the 50th consecutive month without a price drop. In 2015, year-over-year price increases averaged 7.6 percent per month. Moderating price increases have a positive impact on home affordability. Among the 53 metro areas surveyed in March, 44 reported higher prices than last year, with six rising by double-digit percentages as high as nearly 52 percent.
Days on market
The average days on market — the number of days between when a home is first listed and a sale contract is signed — for homes sold in the metro areas in the survey March was 71, down four days from the average in February, and seven days lower than the average in March 2015. March becomes the 36th consecutive month with a days on market average of 80 or less. The two markets with the lowest inventory supply, Denver, Colorado and San Francisco also had the lowest days on market at 33 and 25, respectively. The highest averages were seen in Augusta, Maine (165); Des Moines, Iowa (111) and Trenton, New Jersey (111).
Months supply of inventory
The average number of homes for sale in the metro areas surveyed March was 1 percent lower than in February and 13.3 percent lower than in March 2015. The short supply of inventory appears to be continuing in 2016. The average loss of inventory on a year-over-year basis in 2015 was 12.2 percent. Based on the rate of home sales in March, the months supply of inventory was 3.2, which was lower than the four-month supply in February and the 3.7 supply in March last year. A six-month supply indicates a market balanced equally between buyers and sellers. The number of metros with an inventory below two months has jumped significantly. While January and February saw five and six metros below two, March is reporting 11 metros with a supply less than two months, including San Francisco at 1 percent.
