NEWS

According to the RI Association of Realtors, the median sales price of single-family homes in Rhode Island continued to climb in August.

The price rose 5.9 percent since August of 2017 to $275,250.

The group claims that “in a sign that the market is in no danger of overheating”, sales of single-family homes decreased year-over-year in August for the sixth consecutive month, falling 3.3 percent.

“The number of homes on the market increased from a year earlier for the past two months following a 28-month decline,” said the Realtors.

According to the latest report from the Rhode Island Association of Realtors, Rhode Island has a 4.4-month supply of homes for sale, up from a 2.7-month supply at the beginning of the year. Among housing experts, a six-month supply is considered balanced between supply and demand.

“Sellers are still seeing more profits than they have seen in quite some time but buyers have regained some leverage thanks to more listings entering the market,” said Joe Luca, 2018 President of the Rhode Island Association of Realtors. “The change has been gradual, but the market is beginning to become more balanced between supply and demand so there’s opportunity for both sellers and persistent buyers. While prices have risen, they’re not exorbitant and interest rates remain low.”

Nationally, the same trends are being seen. “Home-price gains were weaker in the three-month period ending in July than in the prior month. The Case-Shiller national index rose a seasonally adjusted 0.2% and was up 6.0% for the year in July, down from a 6.2% increase in June. The more closely-watched 20-city index had notched a 6.4% gain last month. Those were the slowest paces of growth since last summer,” according to Marketwatch.

In RI,  condominium sales closing activity and the median price fell .49 percent and 6.4 percent, respectively. Both sales activity and median price have fluctuated each month in the condo market, showing no clear future trend. There is currently a 4.7-month supply of condominiums available for sale.

By contrast, both sales and the median selling price of multifamily properties soared in August.  There were 23 percent more closings last month than 12 months earlier and at $249,900, August’s median sales price rose 13.6 percent from the prior year. The median sales price has increased by double-digit amounts for 17 of the past 21 months and sales have increased year-over-year during all but two of those months. Even with significant year-over-year gains in inventory for the past five months, there remains only a four-month supply of multifamily properties on the market. By all accounts, real estate remains a hot commodity in the investor-driven multifamily home market.

 

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