HOUSTON – Houston’s single-family home sales were up 10 percent in May over May of last year, according to the Houston Association of Realtors.
HAR reported a total of 7,343 homes sold in May compared to 6,678 in May 2015.
The association credited the gain to an increased supply of homes for sale.
“We are seeing more normal market conditions for this time of year and that is the direct result of more plentiful housing inventory for buyers,” said HAR Chairman Mario Arriaga with First Group. “A year ago, the supply of homes was historically low, which increased buyer-side demand and pushed up pricing. These are the fundamental forces of supply and demand, and with more available housing and an easing of prices, we look forward to a healthy pace of sales throughout the summer.”
Homes priced between $150,000 and $500,000 represented the strongest part of the market. Although the upper end of the housing market has shown some softness, other sectors of Houston realty are thriving despire the downturn in the energy industry.
On a year-to-date basis, home sales are running 3.6 percent ahead of the pace of 2015, which was the second best year ever for Houston home sales.
The Houston real estate market gauges held to positive territory in May compared to those from a year earlier and continue to reflect what are widely considered sustainable market conditions. On a year-over-year basis, single-family homes sales and total dollar volume were up, inventory grew and prices were statistically flat.
Month-end pending sales for single-family homes totaled 8,286, an increase of 15.6 percent compared to last year which portends the likelihood of more positive sales when the June numbers are tallied. Total active listings at the end of May climbed 17.4 percent from May 2015 to 35,416.
June 15, 2016