Rising prices and a lack of choices have pushed central Ohio home sales down for the third straight month.
During October, 2,742 homes sold, 18 fewer than a year ago. Columbus-area home sales have now fallen eight of the past 10 months.
Homes also sat on the shelf longer. Homes that changed hands in October sold in 33 days, up one day from a year ago.
Prices continued to rise, suggesting no slowdown in demand. The median sales price of a home in Central Ohio was $193,918 in October, up 6% from a year ago. For the year, prices are up 7.4%, according to the Columbus Realtors trade group.
Central Ohio was the fifth-hottest housing market in the nation in October, according to Realtor.com.
The number of homes for sale in central Ohio rose slightly in October, but remain far below normal. At the current sales pace, all the Columbus-area homes listed would take two months to sell, compared to about six months in a traditional market.
"With the increase in inventory, recent data showed that 44.43% of home sellers reduced the price of their home to ensure a timely sale," Sara Walsh, president of Columbus Realtors, said in a news release.
Home sales are likely to continue slipping through the end of the year, judging by a 4% drop in the number of homes put into contract (but not yet closed) in October.
Statewide, sales slipped 3.2% from a year ago, according to the Ohio Association of Realtors.
Nationally sales rose 1.4% from September in October, according to the National Association of Realtors, which adjusts its sales figures to reflect seasonal changes.
"Despite this much-welcomed month over month gain, sales are still down from a year ago, a large reason for which is affordability challenges from higher interest rates," NAR President John Smaby said in a news release.
The national median sales price rose 3.8% in October to $255,400, for the 80th straight month of year-over-year gains.
"After six consecutive months of decline, buyers are finally stepping back into the housing market," Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist, said in a news release.
