Listings Up, Prices Down Across U.S.

The holidays can be a slower time in real estate, but this year, after a prolonged sellers’ market and a pandemic, there may be some relief for buyers and an uptick in business for Realtors®.

Though higher mortgage rates and low inventory have been deterring some buyers from entering the market, recent data from Realtor.com® shows that there are more active listings on the market and the median home price has dropped. Active listings are up 46.8% compared to last year and up 13% from October to November, which is the biggest jump since May. The number of unsold homes, which includes pending properties, is up 3% year over year. However, newly listed homes have dropped 17.2% year over year.

Listings in Pennsylvania in November were down 24.2% compared to the same time last year, according to a report prepared for the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors®.

Nationwide, homes are spending more time on the market with an average of 56 days, which is eight more than 2021, but still below pre-2020 levels, when homes were on the market for an average of 74 days.

Home prices are still on the rise, but that growth has slowed and the median price remains below June’s record high. In November, the median list price was $416,000, down nearly 8% from June’s median of $449,000. Month over month, home prices were up 11%, which is below the peak rate of 18.2% again in June.

In Pennsylvania, the median price increased in October and November to $216,386 in November, which is up 13.7% over the same time in 2021, but still not at the high of $219,154 the state reached in July.

Additionally, more sellers are dropping their original listing price. In October, 19.6% of homes dropped their price, up more than 10% from last November. It’s a slight decline from the number of homes who dropped their prices in October (down 1.3%).

In the Northeast, the active listing count is up 9.1% year year, while new listings are down 20.2%. The median listing price is up 9.4% compared to last November and homes are on the market on average four days longer.