NWA Market statistics for February are in!
Overall national trends have seen slowing housing markets (less sales, longer days on market, and significantly fewer new loan applications). Anecdotally, based on the number of price changes and activity levels on listings (showings, agent inquiries, offer submissions, etc.) we saw during February, we would have expected to see more signs of the market slowing. However, we can’t say the numbers reflect that (at least not yet).
The months of inventory went down from 6 to 5 months in February, and the ratio of sales price to original list price is still in the very high 90’s. Both of which indicate buyers are out there and are still offering very close to the list price (i.e. sellers are not making large concessions to find a buyer). Consistent marginal increases in median sales price and price per square foot is reassuring. Along similar lines, total sales, both by dollars and by count, was up more than 20% from last month.
Interestingly, expired listings dropped significantly (only 2 for every 3 in Jan), which you would expect to be increasing if the market was turning to more of a buyer’s market. New listings jumped 18.6% from last month; which could seem worrisome if months of inventory was increasing. However, with the opposite true, it is a sign new buyers entering the market have been outpacing new sellers entering the market. Something worth continuing to monitor.
The one metric here that could indicate a slowing is the median days to sell, which increased by 9 days to 83 days to sell. This was the first time in five years (March 2019) that the median days to sell was 80 days or above. We would be incline to interpret this as a less cut-throat market for buyers. That is, there are fewer competing offers on a single listing, and less of a need for offers with very competitive terms (like cash offers that waive inspections which typically yield much faster closings).
Truthfully, we had expected to see a more prominent slowdown in February from January, but we can’t speak to that just yet looking at the updated performance indicators. Although we will acknowledge it does have an inherent flaw, as this data is always rear-looking (historical data vs. projection models). Still, knowing the real numbers for this market allows us to provide clients with the best information; which is far more important than “my gut says” advise. Reach out if you have any questions or any real estate need!