May Home Sales: Going, Going, Gone!

Jun 18, 2018

May’s home sales are at a pace that have not been seen over the past decade.

According to the latest RE/MAX National Housing Report, the average number of days on the market for homes sold in May was 46, down six days from the average in April and down five days from the May 2017 average. This represented the second-lowest monthly number in the nearly 10-year history of RE/MAX’s report. San Francisco and Seattle tied with the lowest number of days on the market, at 19, while Augusta, Maine, had the highest average at 115 days.

"Even with low inventory and the Federal Reserve raising interest rates, homes are going from 'for sale' to sold 28 percent faster than three years ago," said RE/MAX Chief Executive Officer Adam Contos.

Of the 54 metro areas surveyed by RE/MAX, the overall average number of home sales increased 14.5 percent from April to May, although last month’s sales total was 2.8 percent lower than one year earlier. The median home price in May was $251,673, up 2.1 percent from April and up 7.8 percent from May 2017. Eleven of the 54 metro areas had double-digit price increases, most notably San Francisco with a 19.3 percent spike.

The number of homes for sale last month was up four percent from April but down 9.5 percent from May. The inventory supply of 2.5 months was the same as April and slightly lower from the 2.6 percent level of the previous year.

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Phil Hall

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Jun 18, 2018

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