Market Summary May 2022

 

Here are the basics - the ARMLS numbers for May 1, 2022 compared with May 1, 2021 for all areas & types:

  • Active Listings (excluding UCB & CCBS): 6,688 versus 5,080 last year - up 31.7% - and up 32.4% from 5,051 last month
  • Active Listings (including UCB & CCBS): 10,161 versus 9,438 last year - up 8.0% - and up 17.6% compared with 8,663 last month
  • Pending Listings: 7,386 versus 7,829 last year - down 5.7% - and down 7.8% from 8,008 last month
  • Under Contract Listings (including Pending, CCBS & UCB): 10,889 versus 12,187 last year - down 10.7% - and down 6.3% from 11,620 last month
  • Monthly Sales: 9,270 versus 10,200 last year - down 9.1% - and down 8.6% from 10,144 last month
  • Monthly Average Sales Price per Sq. Ft.: $302.64 versus $243.36 last year - up 24.4% - and up 4.1% from $290.75 last month
  • Monthly Median Sales Price: $466,000 versus $373,000 last year - up 24.9% - and up 2.3% from $456,000 last month

Between late October and mid March we saw a downward trend in supply. However this has completely changed direction over the past 6 weeks and active listing counts are rising very strongly. They are up more than 32% in a single month, one of the most dramatic shifts in direction we have ever seen. If this trend continues for several months the market dynamics will change significantly.

The large increase in supply is caused by a combination of factors. First, we are seeing more new listings arrive, possibly because people who have made large unrealized profits cash out while the going is good. Secondly, we are seeing a significant drop in demand as a sudden jump in interest rates and eye-watering prices discourage new owner-occupiers from entering the market. We note that listings under contract are down more than 6% since last month. Closed sales are also down more than 9% from April 2021. Demand is weak and getting weaker.

The overall effect is a major cooling event, turning a hot housing market into one that still favors sellers (for now) but is looking increasingly dangerous with each passing day. It only favors sellers because the supply is still very low compared with a normal market. But if supply continues to increase, as looks very likely at this point, we could quickly find ourselves with as many sellers as buyers. The market does not turn on a dime, but it can certainly change dramatically over a handful of months, as it did between August and November 2005. The charts today suggest we are now entering a very different phase of the market cycle.

Make no mistake - closed prices will continue to rise for some time - they are a trailing indicator and will only stop rising long after the market has cooled down. But it does not take too much imagination to envisage a situation where they overshoot. Right now we have just seen the average $/SF rise 4.1% in a single month. But this reflects the huge imbalance between supply and demand that existed two months ago. That imbalance is much smaller today and is shrinking noticeably with every passing day.

We are entering a much more uncertain period and great caution is advisable. The mid-range market between April 2021 and April 2022 has been largely driven by enthusiastic investors. If their enthusiasm dissipates and turns to fear we could see far more rapid change than we have become used to.

 

MLS Supply Up 45% in 6 Weeks
Rising Interest Rates Dropping Demand Quickly

For Buyers:
It’s the moment you’ve been waiting for, less competition and more supply in Greater Phoenix! Active supply is up 40% from this time last year, but all that gain has been achieved over the last 6 weeks with an increase of 45%. This is an enormous change from April’s report where supply was only up 16% over last year and still below the count reported on January 1st. As of this report, the supply count is 7,157, still 72% below normal for this time of year but rising quickly.

The annual change in inventory is impressive, but it’s the short-term growth that is sending shock waves throughout the market. Inventory listed between $400K-$500K is up 35% in just 3 weeks. Counts in all segments between $500K-$1M are up 99% in 6 weeks and the count from $1M-$1.5M is up 54%, also within 6 weeks. Not all price ranges are rising in inventory. Properties listed below $400K are still flying off the shelves and declining in supply.

The increase in inventory may seem like an early Christmas miracle, but it’s not coming from a massive flood of new listings hitting the market. Visualize supply counts as the level of water in a bathtub, with new listings coming through the faucet and accepted contracts going down the drain. The water level can rise if there are more new listings coming through the faucet, or if there are fewer accepted contract flowing down the drain. In this case, new listings are at normal levels and not excessive, but fast rising mortgage rates have reduced the number of accepted contracts and closed the drain. This is what is causing inventory in the “bathtub” to increase dramatically.

While recent interest rates are disappointing for many buyers, causing some to drop out and wait, history has shown us that they rarely stay high, or low, forever. While it’s near impossible to predict when interest rates may begin to decline, if we look over the last decade when interest rates have risen by 1% or more within a year, it has taken anywhere from 1 to 3 years for them to return to their original starting point. Even when rates increased by a whopping 5% over 14 months from 1980-1981, it only took 1.5yrs to drop back to where they started. Future expected interest rate drops over the next few years along with moderate home price appreciation and monthly principal reductions may provide today’s buyers the opportunity to lower their payments by hundreds of dollars down the road.

For Sellers:
The market is in the early stage of shifting out of an insane seller market and into a mere frenzy seller market. Before we know it, it could be a regular old hot seller market where properties still appreciate but take multiple weeks to sell, buyers don’t waive their appraisal contingency, and sellers happily pay for home warranties. But before all of that happens, it starts with one simple act from a seller, a list price reduction.

As inventory has risen at a fast pace over the past 6 weeks, so have the number of weekly price reductions as sellers compete for fewer buyers. Listings between $400K-$500K have seen a 103% increase, with the median price drop at $13,000. Price drops in $500K-$800K range increased 157%, with median drops between $16,000 and $20,000. Drops in the $800K-1.5M range increased 125%, with a median drop between $25,000 to $50,000.

So far, price reductions have proven effective in keeping the median days prior to contract around 7 days. However, as inventory continues to rise in the coming weeks, price reductions may not be enough to keep some properties from lingering longer in active status, creating more choice for buyers and strengthening their bargaining power.

While the market is still strongly in favor of sellers, it is changing rapidly. For those sellers waiting to sell close the peak of price, this may be the time to list. Prices are still projected to continue rising, but at a slower pace over the next few months.


Commentary written by Tina Tamboer, Senior Housing Analyst with The Cromford Report
©2022 Cromford Associates LLC and Tamboer Consulting LLC

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Troy Holland

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Information provided courtesy The Cromford Report.