The share of for-sale homes with price drops passed the 5 percent mark in August, according to a recent Redfin report. That’s the highest since late 2019 and is occurring during a time of the year that is usually relatively flat.
Homebuying demand remains strong and the market is tipped heavily in sellers’ favor, according to Redfin. But sellers who overprice their homes are spending a week or two on the market without any bids and adjusting their asking prices accordingly.
“The housing market is less hectic than it was in early spring, but it’s still far from typical. The move to a less imbalanced market is happening slowly,” Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather said in a release. “As we approach the beginning of back-to-school season, home prices typically cool, supply winds down, and homes take longer to sell. All that’s happening, just very slowly. I don’t think the housing market will return to a fully typical state anytime soon, but we are starting to trend in that direction.”
According to Redfin data from the four-week period that ended Aug. 15, the median home-sale price increased 17 percent year-over-year to $361,973, a record high.
Asking prices of newly listed homes were up 10 percent year-over-year to a median of $353,347, the lowest level since mid-April. It is also down 2.2 percent from the all-time high set during the four-week period ending June 27.
New listings were up 3 percent year-over-year, and active listings fell 24 percent from 2020, the smallest decline since October 2020.
Half of homes that went under contract had an accepted offer within the first two weeks on the market, well above the 44 percent rate a year ago, and 36 percent had an accepted offer within one week, up from 32 percent a year ago.
Homes that sold were on the market for a median of 18 days, up from the all-time low of 15 in late June and July, and down from 35 days a year earlier.
The average home sold for 1.8 percent above its asking price, down 0.5 percentage points from its peak during the four-week period ending July 11, and up 2.7 percentage points year over year.