Before diving into the market trends stats for February 2023, it’s really important to put the prior year stats into perspective.
Prior year - February 2022 - Market Activity was Unprecendented
The first quarter of last year marked an all-time high in terms of buyer demand and a competitive market.
- — Interest rates were incredibly low, which fueled unprecedented buyer demand.
- — Droves of buyers were competing to purchase the very few homes on the market causing homes to sell incredibly quickly and at prices well above list price.
Since then, buyer activity has slowed considerably due to the spike in interest rates over the past 9 months.
Are Housing Prices Down in February 2023?
Comparing this February to last February’s frenzied market, one might expect prices to be down considerably. Surprisingly, that didn’t happen. Prices have remained relatively flat.
You’ll see that the average price for detached homes is down year over year by only 1.9%.
but the average price for condos and townhomes is UP by 3.2%.
With mortgage rates so high, why haven’t prices fallen? The answer is that we just don’t have enough homes available to satisfy buyer demand.
What about Active Listings in February 2023?
Let’s take a look at active listings in 2023 compared to prior years. While we have more homes available than we did in 2022 and 2021, we are still well below the levels of 2019 and 2020.
To put this into historical context, take a look at how drastically our housing supply has been reduced since 2007, despite a growing population. If active listings stay at the current low levels, prices will likely remain stable this year.
Important messages for Sellers
First, take a look at the graph that shows this year’s average sales price changes compared to last year. Prices haven’t slipped much so you didn’t lose out by not selling last year. You can still get a great price for your home selling this spring.
Secondly, if choose to list your home be prepared to pay some concessions for inspection items or buyer loan costs. The percentage of closings with concessions has grown from 33% in 2022 to 60% in 2023.
Important messages for Buyers
The biggest YOY change in market stats was with days on market. Last February the median days on market for single-family homes was only 4 days. This February it took 26 days to sell a home. This is great news for the buyers who may have lost out last spring in multiple-offer bidding wars.
Buyers will also like the stats that since February of 2022, buyers are seeing about 4 times the amount of price drops, and the percentage of closings with buyer concessions has doubled.
Sellers are finally willing to negotiate.
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