Redfin: Home Prices Surged 7.7 Percent in August as Inventory Fell 12.4 Percent

Hurricane Harvey sent Houston home sales down 29 percent while new listings tumbled 12 percent

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- (NASDAQ: RDFN) — Home prices in August surged 7.7 percent, the largest year-over-year price gain since May 2015, according to Redfin (www.redfin.com), the next-generation real estate brokerage. The national median sale price was $293,000, flat from July. None of the metro areas Redfin tracks saw prices decline in August. The median value of off-market homes in August was $251,000, as measured by the Redfin Estimate, up 0.7 percent from July.

Sales in August fell 5.5 percent compared to last year, the largest decline posted since July 2016. This follows the 5 percent decline posted in July by the Redfin Housing Demand Index.

The number of homes for sale plunged 12.4 percent, the largest year-over-year decline in a 23-month streak of declining inventory. The number of new listings in August was down 1 percent from a year ago, leaving just 2.8 months of supply. Less than six months of supply signals the market is tilted in favor of sellers.

Nearly a quarter (24.9%) of homes sold above their list price. The average sale-to-list ratio was 98.5 percent. The typical home that sold in August went under contract in 39 days, two days longer than July’s record-setting pace, typical of a seasonal slowdown.

“The real estate market still favors sellers, with strong demand and rising prices, but perhaps less so now than earlier in the year,” said Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman. “Newly listed homes are selling faster in 2017 than in 2016, but whereas in April the market was nine days faster than the 2016 market, in August it was five; the gap between 2016 and 2017 is narrowing slightly. Normally such differences wouldn’t be worth mentioning, but Redfin managers of coastal markets where demand has been strongest are now reporting that some buyers are stepping back from higher prices.”

Hurricane Harvey’s Impact on the Houston Real Estate Market

Hurricane Harvey sent Houston sales falling 29 percent year over year, as buyers backed out of purchasing flooded homes and home settlements were delayed awaiting required reinspections. Flood damage is limiting the number of homes being listed for sale. New listings declined 12.2 percent compared to last August. Despite the decline in new listings, inventory was still up 5.7 percent compared to last year.

While most real estate activity halted for a few days immediately following the storm, Redfin agents reported rebounding buyer interest, tours and offers in the final days of the month.

Other August Data

Competition

• Seattle, WA was the fastest market, with nearly half of all homes pending sale in just 8 days, down from 10 days from a year earlier. Portland, OR and Denver, CO were the next fastest markets with 11 and 12 median days on market, followed by Boston, MA (13) and Tacoma, WA (13).
• The most competitive market in August was San Jose, CA where 73.8% of homes sold above list price, followed by 72.3% in San Francisco, CA, 67.3% in Oakland, CA, 51.3% in Seattle, WA, and 48.1% in Tacoma, WA.

Prices

• Seattle, WA had the nation’s highest price growth, rising 16% since last year to $522,000. Fort Lauderdale, FL had the second highest growth at 15.6% year-over-year price growth, followed by Cincinnati, OH (14.5%), Las Vegas, NV (14%), and San Jose, CA (13.4%).
• No metros saw a price decline in August.
• Detroit, MI had the highest month-over-month increase in the value of off-market homes up 3%, as measured by the Redfin Estimate; this mirrored price growth for on-market homes, up 5.3% year over year.

Sales

• Columbia, SC saw the largest decline in sales since last year, falling 93.2%. Home sales in Newark, NJ and Houston, TX declined by 75.3% and 29.1%, respectively.
• 4 out of 75 metros saw sales surge by double digits from last year. Camden, NJ led the nation in year-over-year sales growth, up 22%, followed by Baton Rouge, LA, up 21%. Baltimore, MD rounded out the top three with sales up 19% from a year ago.

Inventory

• San Jose, CA had the largest decrease in overall inventory, falling 49.9% since last August. Oakland, CA (-31.8%), San Francisco, CA (-30.9%), and Tampa, FL (-26.8%) also saw far fewer homes available on the market than a year ago.
• Austin, TX had the highest increase in the number of homes for sale, up 13.9% year over year, followed by New Orleans, LA (8.3%) and Houston, TX (5.7%).

Redfin Estimate

• The median list price-to-Redfin Estimate ratio was 94.1% in San Francisco, the lowest of any market. This indicates the typical home for sale in August was listed at a price 5.9% below its estimated value. Only 8.9% of homes in San Francisco were listed for more than their Redfin Estimate.
• Conversely, the median list price-to-Redfin Estimate ratio was 103% in Miami, FL and 102.6% in West Palm Beach, which means sellers are listing their homes for more than the estimated value in those metro areas. In Miami, 64.6% of homes were listed above their Redfin Estimate.

To read the full report, complete with data and charts, please visit the following link: https://www.redfin.com/blog/2017/09/market-tracker-august-2017.html

About Redfin

Redfin (www.redfin.com) is the next-generation real estate brokerage, combining its own full-service agents with modern technology to redefine real estate in the consumer’s favor. Founded by software engineers, Redfin has the country’s #1 brokerage website and offers a host of online tools to consumers, including the Redfin Estimate, the automated home-value estimate with the industry’s lowest published error rate for listed homes. Homebuyers and sellers enjoy a full-service, technology-powered experience from Redfin real estate agents, while saving thousands in commissions. Redfin serves more than 80 major metro areas across the U.S. The company has closed more than $50 billion in home sales.

For more information or to contact a local Redfin real estate agent, visit www.redfin.com. To learn about housing market trends and download data, visit the Redfin Data Center. To be added to Redfin’s press release distribution list, subscribe here. To view Redfin’s press center, click here.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170914005314/en/

Redfin Journalist Services:
Alina Ptaszynski, 206-588-6863
press@redfin.com

Source: Redfin

Released September 14, 2017