Every metro area in the United States tracked by the US National Association of Realtors® during 3Q 2020 saw home prices increase from a year ago, according to NAR’s latest quarterly report, released Thursday.
- Single-family existing home prices rose in all measured metro areas in 3Q 2020.
- 65% of metro areas had double-digit price gains.
- The monthly mortgage payment on a typical single-family home rose to US$1,059 and the family income needed to afford a home rose to US$50,819.
- The proportion of first-time buyers dropped to 31%, the lowest share in over 30 years.
The nation’s median existing single-family home price climbed +12% on a year-over-year basis, to US$313,500.
All four major regions saw double-digit year-over-year price gains, led by the West, +14%, but followed closely by the Northeast, +13%, the South +11%, and the Midwest, +11%.
At this rate, home prices were growing four times as fast as median family income, which was +3%.
At the end of 3Q 2020, 1.47 million existing homes were available for sale, -19% lower than total inventory at the end of 3Q 2019. As of September 2020, housing inventory totals were equivalent to 2.7 months at the current sales pace.
The median sale prices of existing single-family homes rose from a year ago in all 181 US metro areas measured in the report, and 65% saw double-digit price gains.
Time on the market is 13 days faster than last year – almost 2 weeks faster than a year ago. The rapid turnover reflects the faster than usual pace of home sales despite the usually slower season. In addition to the sellers’ market pressures, in which homes sell quickly after listing, measured time on market is also dropping as the share of fresh listings rises.