Houston, TX Metro Area Housing Market Analysis - August 2024
The Houston, TX metro area housing market has experienced notable shifts as of August 2024. The Median Sales Price for homes stands at $338,296, reflecting a year-over-year (YoY) decrease of 3.3%. Conversely, the Median List Price has seen a slight increase of 0.4%, now at $351,420. This divergence suggests a potential softening in buyer demand or increased negotiation power among buyers.
The median Price Per Square Foot has remained relatively stable, with a minor YoY increase of 0.2%, bringing it to $164.78. The Median List Price per square foot has risen by 3.1%, now at $171.77. These figures indicate that while sellers are listing homes at higher prices per square foot, the actual sales prices are not keeping pace, possibly due to market adjustments or buyer resistance to higher prices.
Sales activity has slowed, with the number of Homes Sold dropping by 11.6% YoY to 7,243 units. Pending Sales have also decreased by 8.5%, totaling 8,064. Despite this, New Listings have increased by 7.0%, reaching 10,894. This influx of New Listings, coupled with a 14.3% rise in inventory to 26,340 homes, suggests a shift towards a more buyer-friendly market.
The Months of Supply, a critical indicator of market balance, has surged by 80.0% YoY to 3.60 months. This significant increase points to a growing inventory relative to the pace of sales, further emphasizing the shift towards a buyer's market. Additionally, the Median Days on Market have increased by 14.0% to 41 days, indicating that homes are taking longer to sell.
The average sale to list ratio has decreased by 1.0% YoY, now at 97.0%, suggesting that homes are selling closer to their list prices but still slightly below. The percentage of Homes Sold above list price has dropped by 6.3%, now at 13.3%, further highlighting the reduced competition among buyers. Price Drops have increased by 3.4%, now at 39.7%, indicating that sellers are more frequently adjusting their expectations to align with market conditions.
Lastly, the percentage of homes going off the market within two weeks has decreased by 4.7%, now at 27.9%. This decline suggests that homes are not selling as quickly as they were in the previous year, reinforcing the trend of a cooling market.
In summary, the Houston, TX metro area housing market in August 2024 is characterized by a decrease in sales prices and sales volume, an increase in inventory and New Listings, and longer times on the market. These trends collectively point towards a market that is becoming more favorable for buyers, with increased inventory and more negotiating power.
