Dive Brief:
-
January home sales were “soft,” according to real estate brokerage firm RE/MAX, which said 3.9% fewer units sold during the month than in January of last year.
-
Still, because of reduced inventory this year, sales prices were 11.2% higher in January than they were a year ago, according to the firm. Although that was 3.3% lower than the median sales price in December, home values have risen for 36 consecutive months on a year-over-year basis.
-
Homes sat on the market for longer in January than they did in December or in January of 2014, the report said. It took an average of 80 days to sell a home in January.
Dive Insight:
RE/MAX Chairman Dave Liniger was quick to point out that “one month certainly doesn’t make a trend.” In fact, he said, real estate sales got off to a slow start in 2014 as well, but rebounded during the spring selling season. “So we still need a few more months of data to tell how this market will perform in 2015,” he said.
Still, the Census Bureau reported this week that builders broke ground on 6.7% fewer single-family homes, and on 2% fewer homes overall, during January than they did in December, which could mean lower inventory for the near future. At the same time, the National Association of Home Builders reported that builder confidence—a reflection of how many potential homebuyers are visiting for-sale new-home projects, slipped in February for the third month in a row.