The seasonally adjusted number of homes for sale fell 18 percent year-over-year in November to an all-time low, according to a Redfin report. That sent the median home sale price up 15 percent, to $383,100.
November marked the 16th consecutive month of double-digit price gains, according to Redfin. Seasonally adjusted closed home sales fell 6 percent year-over year, and new listings of homes for sale fell 9 percent. The average home sold for 0.6 percent more than list price.
“I wish I had better news for homebuyers … but in many ways the housing market is more challenging than ever,” Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather said in a release. “At least buyers have the benefit of low mortgage rates. But by next year, inflation may spread to more consumer goods. So even though our new year’s forecast includes more listings and slower home-price growth, buyers may feel so pinched by other expenses that they have to reduce their housing budgets.”
Median sale prices increased year-over-year in all the 85 largest metro areas Redfin tracks. The largest price increases were in Austin, Texas (+31 percent), Phoenix (+27 percent) and North Port, Fla. (+27 percent).
Seasonally adjusted home sales in November were down 6 percent from a year earlier. The biggest sales declines were seen in Nassau County, N.Y. (-21 percent), Bridgeport, Conn. (-19 percent) and McAllen, Texas (-17 percent). The largest gains were in Honolulu (+31 percent), San Francisco (+13 percent) and Tulsa, Okla. (11 percent).
Seasonally adjusted active listings —homes that were for sale at any time during the month — hit an all-time low in November, falling 18 percent year-over-year. Only four of the 85 largest metros tracked by Redfin posted a year-over-year increase in the number of seasonally adjusted active listings of homes for sale: Detroit (+7 percent), Milwaukee (+4 percent), Austin, Texas (+3 percent) and Tacoma, Wash. (+2 percent).
The biggest year-over-year declines in active housing supply in November were in Baton Rouge, La. (-51 percent), Salt Lake City (-50 percent) and Sacramento, Calif. (-48 percent).
Seasonally adjusted new listings of homes for sale were down 9 percent year-over-year in November. New listings fell from a year ago in 57 of the largest metro areas. The biggest declines were in Baton Rouge, La. (-55 percent), Salt Lake City (-55 percent) and Allentown, Pa. (-52 percent). New listings rose the most from a year ago in Detroit (+20 percent), Pittsburgh (+11 percent) and Indianapolis (+9 percent).