Home sales may be flagging a bit, but prices are rising and have been each and every month since January, according to a new analysis from Housing Intelligence.
New home sales dipped 8% in June, according to the Census Bureau. And existing home sales fell in the month by 5%, the National Association of Realtors reported recently. But prices have risen, an indication, says HI, that the decline in sales may be only speed bump on the road to the market’s recovery.
Since January, the year-over-year change in the median price of both new and existing houses has gained ground on a monthly basis. In February, the gain was a scant 1%. But in March, the median was up 5% over the same month a year ago. In April, the median rose 6%. In May, it was up 7%, and in June, the median was 8% higher than in the previous June.
“This bodes well for the new construction business as well as existing home owners,” HI’s Jonathan Dienhart commented. “As prices continue to rise, it means more existing home owners are able to consider selling, and it will embolden new home builders to begin broader construction.”
“In this context,” Dienhart added, “the surge in June housing starts makes a lot of sense, and puts us on a good path to break 700,000 housing starts by yearend.”
