Welcome back to this September edition of my “How’s the Market?” series. This data is the Aug 2022 data.
The Fall season is officially here! What are we seeing?
There is a big cooling from this time last year, but that was a rare market. We are still doing better than Aug 2019.
Inventory
There has been a big drop in the number of contracts. There has not been an increase in inventory comparatively. We are up from this time last year, but not the massive increase that people are talking about online or in national trends. Inventory here is still very low – we are still in a sellers’ market (in most places). DC over $2M, DC condos under $1M, and PG over $1M are experiencing a balanced market in August.
As our fall market begins, we do expect to see a 20-30% increase in new inventory.
Median days on market is 10 days. This is trending upward.
Prices
There is softer price growth in cities; this is true of DC, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. Prices are still up though.
Sellers price expectations are beginning to set in. List prices had been lowered for nearly 53% of homes active on the market during the week ending September 4.
We do expect to see price appreciation in the 4-6% range for the next 24-36 months.
Showing Appointments
Showings are at 2019 levels. There were more than 75,000 showings during the week ending September 4, which is 19.1% lower than a year ago and 36.5% lower than the same week during 2020. Weekly showing activity has been similar to 2019 levels for most of the summer.
Maryland My Maryland
Home sales cooled in Maryland — down 24.1% in August 2022. Prices continued to increase (average 5.4% increase). This rate of increase is lower than it was in say May, so the market is cooling.
Mortgage Rates and Other Financing Updates
Where are mortgage rates right now?
We are seeing more interest-only mortgages (for the wealthy/very well qualified) and ARM loans. Bridge loans are back too.
From a buyer perspective, financing really needs to look less at the purchase price and more at the monthly payment, the method of financing, and equity growth you can expect in your home. Thus it is very important to start talking to your lender and your real estate agent early in the process! (I know, we agents always say this. But it is true.)
New conforming loan limit — $715,000 expected (primary residence only and one unit only).
Sources:
Bright MLS. Lisa Sturtevant. “Weekly Market Report.” September 6, 2022.
TTRSIR Internal report. Effective inventory. September 1, 2022.
Bright MLS. Lisa Sturtevant. “Market Insights: August 2022.” September 12, 2022.
Maryland Realtors. August 2022 Housing Stats. “With Few Homes Sold and Prices Rising, Maryland’s August 2022 Housing Statistics Points to Cooldown.” September 12, 2022.
TTRSIR Internal Meeting including lenders from Guaranteed Rate, September 14, 2022.
