Home prices up in 87 percent of metros

In 87 percent of markets across the county, single-family home prices rose in the second quarter, according to a recent report from the National Association of Realtors®.

The median home price also rose, hitting a new peak, increasing 6.2 percent year-to-year to $255,600, up from $240,700. Thirteen percent of metros analyzed saw home prices increase in double-digit percentages, which is down 4 percent from the first quarter of the year. However, more markets saw price increases this past quarter.

“The 2.2 million net new jobs created over the past year generated significant interest in purchasing a home in what was an extremely competitive spring buying season,” Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said in a release. “Listings typically flew off the market in under a month — and even quicker in the affordable price range — in several parts of the country. With new supply not even coming close to keeping pace, price appreciation remained swift in most markets.”

Existing-home sales decreased 0.9 percent to 5.57 million, down from 5.62 million in the first quarter. However, the report found that existing-home sales are still 1.6 percent up year-to-year. In the Northeast, existing-home sales increased 1.3 percent in the second quarter, a 0.4 percent year-to-year growth. The median existing single-family home price was $282,300, an increase of 3.2 percent year-to-year.

By the end of the second quarter, 1.96 million existing homes were on the market, a dip of 7.1 percent, compared to the second quarter of last year, when 2.11 million homes were for sale.

“The glaring need for more new home construction is creating an affordability crisis that needs to be addressed by policy officials and local governments. An increasing share of would-be buyers are being priced out of the market and are unable to experience the wealth building benefits of homeownership,” added Yun in the release.