What does the latest data say about the housing market?
The weekly housing data from Altos Research showed a market that is continuing to hold up in the face of an elevated rate environment.
According to the most recent report, there are 543,000 single-family homes on the market now. That’s a 3% jump in listings, and a 31% improvement from last year at the same time. This is due in part to seasonal trends, but we’re also seeing homes build up on the market due to the recent spike in mortgage rates.
The market also saw 69,000 new listings hit the market. There were more new sellers this week than any week during 2023. Selling season has the potential for as much as two more months of growth, so there’s a chance we could see new highs in new listings over the next few months.
71,000 new contracts were started for single-family homes this past week, so sales are still active. That’s 3% higher than last week, and 7% higher than the same week last year.
The median price of new contracts last week was $398,000. That’s 6% higher than the same week this past year and set a new all-time high. What’s unique about home prices is that growth is slower than previous years. Home prices are only up about 6.1% from January. That’s slower than the growth rate for either of the past two years. The data indicates that prices are slowing and we may see retracement if we continue to see housing inventory increase and sales start to slow.
Where did mortgage rates start the week?
The national average for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage rate ended trading down 0.01% to 7.43%* to start the week on Monday. Market watchers were able to summarize the start of the week in one word, “Boring.”
The market will get guidance from inflation data at the end of the week, and everyone is looking forward to next week’s guidance from the Federal Reserve. Unless there are major developments that impact all sectors, this could shape up as one of the dullest weeks on the calendar for mortgage rates.
How is the housing market in Kentucky this spring?
According to recent data from Bluegrass Realtors, the Kentucky real estate market is seeing an all-time high in new listings.
Bluegrass Home Group real estate agent Cynthia Trgo stated, “Rates were definitely higher in December and January, and we’ve seen them come down since then. Overall, it’s going to be a really good year for real estate—probably higher than last year.”
The median price for a home in Kentucky is around $250,000. That’s far below the national average. Listings have increased by about 5% from 2023, and homes only average about 48 days on the market. Townhomes and condos saw an increase in sales by 30% last month.
Trgo went on to say, “Higher-priced homes are kind of in their own little market. We have like the beginner, entry homes. That’s kind of in its own little market, and that market is really on fire.”
* National average rates accurate as of 4/22/24 from MortgageNewsDaily.com and are not advertised rates from Guaranteed Rate.
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