Just a few days out from July and Realtor.com is given us the first look at the market conditions last month. And the focus is definitely on a lack of listings! According to new data, active listings declined 6.4 percent annually in July for the first time in more than a year.
On a typical day in July, there were 45,000 fewer homes available to buy than a year ago.
With active inventory 49.2 percent below typical pre-pandemic July levels, the market tipped slightly in buyers’ favor as the median list price declined 0.9 percent year-over-year.
“While a second monthly year-over-year decline in list prices bodes well for potential buyers, the ongoing lack of homes available for sale continues to prop up home prices and will keep declines relatively modest for the remainder of the year,” said Danielle Hale, Chief Economist for realtor.com. “Interest rate hikes continue to further cut into buyers’ purchasing power, although they appear to have adapted to the higher mortgage rate environment faster than sellers, many of whom are still on the sidelines, locked in to lower interest rates and unwilling to cash in their home’s equity to purchase another. That’s putting a damper on home sales, which will likely post their smallest annual tally this year in over a decade.”
Both newly listed homes and pending listings, or homes under contract, declined by double digits last month when compared to July 2022. Realtor.com does note, however, that July’s decline in pending listings is smaller than June’s 16.7 percent decline and much improved from December’s peak decline of 36.9 percent.
Active inventory decreased in 38 out of 50 of the largest metros compared to last year. Only the Southern region saw inventory grow. Declines were greatest in Phoenix, Seattle and San Jose.