Home price growth slows as inventory fell in May MABA MassachusettsRealEstate FirstTimeHomeBuyers MaBuyerAgent

The growth of home prices slowed in May, and inventory continued to shrink, according to a new Realtor.com report. Realtor.com’s May Monthly Housing Trends Report found active inventory fell in twenty one of fifty of the largest metros as fewer sellers are listing their homes, increasing buyer competition. Boston’s active listings fell three point six percent, and new listings fell twenty six point two percent, compared to the same month last year. Realtor.com’s Chief Economist Danielle Hale said April and May are historically popular months for buyers, and usually this time of year the market has exceeded the prior year’s peak home price. “Weakening home price growth for the past twelve months is increasing the odds that we may not see a new home price peak this year, for the first time in the history of our listing data, which dates back to mid-2016, and this is likely welcome news to homeshoppers,” Hale said.

“The good news for sellers is that buyers are still out there, and this month’s slower growth in the active inventory of homes for sale indicates that shoppers are in the market and actively searching for homes that fit their needs and budget.” Home price growth stalled in May with the median list price growing to $441,000, up from $430,000 in April but down one point seven percent from June 2022’s $449,000 record high. That annual growth rate slowed in May to just point nine percent, the lowest price growth on record. The median list price fell in fifteen of the largest fifty metros with the greatest declines seen in Texas, where Austin prices fell seven point three percent from last year, Houston was down five point nine percent and San Antonio was down five point eight percent.

Boston’s median list price was $867,000 in May, up fourteen point five percent from 2022. None of the fifty largest metros had a year over year increase in new listings in May. Listing activity fell twenty point four percent in the South, thirty two point nine percent in the West, twenty two point nine percent in the Northeast and twenty two point eight percent in the Midwest. Homes are also taking longer to sell. In May they took two weeks longer than they did a year ago, with a typical home spending forty three days on market. While that’s fourteen days longer than a year ago, it’s nine days faster than the pre-pandemic average.

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