It was the hottest March ever for the housing market, with homes selling at their fastest pace and for more above list price than any other March on record, according to Redfin. The median home-sale price rose 6.2 percent in March, the fastest month-over-month gain during the spring since 2013, to an all-time high of $412,700. Seasonally adjusted home sales fell 4 percent as soaring mortgage rates and prices sidelined more buyers, whose options were limited due to a decline in home listings.
“Although pricey coastal markets began showing early signs of a slowdown in late March, nationwide sales data for the full month reflects the hottest March market on record, since homes that sold last month mostly went under contract in February,” Redfin chief economist Daryl Fairweather said in a release. “We expect the combination of surging mortgage rates and record-high home prices to cause more homebuyers to drop out of the market. Unfortunately, homeowners are turning their back on the market too. Instead of being motivated to list before prices weaken, potential homesellers may be choosing to wait-out the impending market cooldown.”
Median sale prices increased year-over-year in all the metro areas Redfin tracks. The largest price increases were in Tampa, Fla. (up 29 percent), Phoenix (up 27 percent) and McAllen, Texas (up 27 percent).
Seasonally adjusted home sales in March were down 4 percent month-over-month and down 8 percent year-over-year. The biggest sales declines were in North Port, Fla. (down 30 percent), West Palm Beach, Fla. (down 24 percent) and Lake County, Ill. (down 21 percent). The largest gains were in Fresno, Calif. (up 6 percent), Philadelphia (up 6 percent) and Oxnard, Calif. (up 3 percent).
Seasonally adjusted active listings fell 13 percent year-over-year to an all-time low in March. The biggest year-over-year declines in active housing supply in March were in Allentown, Pa. (down 47 percent), Greensboro, N.C. (down 41 percent) and Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (down 37 percent). The only metro areas where the number of homes for sale increased were Elgin, Ill. (up 29 percent), Chicago (up 13 percent), Detroit (up 13 percent) and Lake County, Ill. (up 5 percent).
The largest year-over-year declines in new listings were in Allentown, Pa. (down 56 percent), Greensboro, N.C. (down 39 percent) and Honolulu (down 25 percent). New listings rose the most in McAllen, Texas (up 17 percent), Rochester, N.Y. (up 7 percent) and Detroit (up 7 percent).
The typical home that sold in March went under contract in 20 days, six days faster than a year earlier, and the shortest time on market ever for March. More than half (54 percent) of homes sold above list price, up 12 percentage points from a year earlier, and the highest March level on record. The average sale-to-list price ratio in March was 102.4 percent, up from 100.6 percent a year earlier, another record-high.