Realtor.com® Housing Report: Homebuying Competition Kicks Off 2022 with the Fastest-Moving January Ever

Rhea-AI Summary

In January 2022, the U.S. housing market experienced its fastest-selling month on record, with homes selling in an average of 61 days, a decrease of 10 days from January 2021. Active listings dropped by 28.4% year-over-year, continuing a four-month trend of declining inventory. Despite rising buyer activity, new listings fell by 9.1%, indicating seller hesitation due to factors like Omicron uncertainties. The median listing price reached $375,000, up 10.3% year-over-year, fueled by strong demand amid limited supply.

Positive

• Homes sold at a record pace in January, averaging 61 days on the market.
• Home prices increased by 10.3% year-over-year, indicating strong demand.

Negative

• Active listings declined by 28.4%, worsening inventory challenges.
• New listings fell 9.1%, suggesting potential seller hesitation.

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Feb. 8, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- It's early days for the 2022 housing market, but new data shows homebuyers are already off to the real estate races. In the first month of the year, the typical U.S. home sold faster than in any prior January, according to the Realtor.com^® Monthly Housing Report released today. Compared to January's national pace, homes sold even more quickly in the 50 largest U.S. metros, with listings flying off the market in 36 days or less in Nashville, Tenn., San Diego, San Jose, Calif., Denver and Raleigh, N.C.

"We're forecasting a whirlwind year ahead for buyers and, if January housing trends are any indication, 2022 competition is already heating up. Homes sold at a record-fast January pace, suggesting that buyers are more active than usual for this time of year," said Realtor.com^® Chief Economist Danielle Hale. "But it's a different story on the other side of the closing table, with new seller listings continuing to decline in January. Factors like Omicron uncertainties could be causing sellers to hesitate even when they know housing conditions are favorable. Another key barrier is the inventory 'chicken-and-egg' dilemma that may vex sellers who are also buying: Do you list now when home shoppers are hungry for more options, or do you wait for more inventory to hit the market in the spring? Ultimately, only you know the best time for your family to make a move, but preparation is key to acting quickly when the right opportunity comes along. Sites like Realtor.com^® offer information and tools to help homeowners keep a pulse on local activity in today's fast-paced market." 

January 2022 Housing Metrics – National

Metric	Change Over Jan. 2021	Change Over Jan. 2020
Active Listing Count	-28.4%	-60.4%
New listings	-9.1%	-17.9
Median Listing Price	10.3% (to $375,000)	25.0%
Median Days on Market	-10 days (to 61 days)	-24 days

2022 kicks-off with the all-time fastest-moving January housing market
Reflecting the mixed impact of 2021's pent-up buyer demand and feverish home sales pace, time on market both hit a new record and offered buyers a first glimmer of relief in January. On one hand, the typical U.S. home spent less time on the market than in any prior January and  a full month less than in the pre-pandemic period from 2017-2019 alone. At the same time, with recent trends following typical seasonal patterns, national time on market increased in January over the final month of 2021.

• The typical U.S. home spent 61 days on the market in January, moderating from the December pace (54 days). However, homes spent less time on the market than in January 2021 (-10 days) and compared to the same month in 2017-2020, on average (-29 days).
• Homes spent less time on the market than the national rate in the 50 largest U.S. metros, at an average of 52 days in January. Southern metros posted the biggest yearly declines in time on market, down 10 days across the region as a whole and led by Miami (-29 days), Orlando, Fla. (-24 days), and Raleigh, N.C. (-17 days).
• In January, time on market increased over last year in just four large markets: Hartford, Conn. (+10 days), Minneapolis (+2 days), and Richmond, Va. (+1 day) and Washington, D.C. (+1 day).

Limited inventory creates challenges for buyers and prospective sellers alike
While buyer activity is accelerating earlier in 2022 than in prior years, January data suggests sellers aren't on the same timeline. The yearly decline in inventory grew for the fourth straight month as new listings continued to fall short of prior years' levels. This is partly due to typical seasonality, as sellers have historically waited until closer to the spring to enter the market. However, January's new listings declines could indicate that some prospective sellers are delaying their original plans to list earlier in the year, as 65% of those surveyed in the fall expected to list by March 2022. A number of potential factors may be behind seller hesitation, from Omicron uncertainties to the decade-long new construction shortage, with the many sellers who also need to buy a next home finding limited options in January. 

• Nationally, the inventory of active listings was down 28.4% year-over-year in January, worsening from last month's rate (-26.8%). Although there were fewer for-sale homes than in January 2020 in all of the 50 largest metros, more than half (26) posted smaller inventory declines than the national rate.
• New listings lagged behind prior year's levels for the second consecutive month in January, down 9.1% nationwide. However, Realtor.com^® Weekly Housing Trends show the annual rate of new listings declines improved steadily over the course of the month. If this trend continues, buyers may start to see more options ahead of the competitive spring season.
• Among the 50 largest U.S. metros, 19 experienced smaller new seller declines than the national rate in January. Additionally, four markets posted annual new listings gains: Cleveland (+7.6%), Orlando, Fla. (+2.3%), Indianapolis (+1.6%) and Houston (+0.9%).

Home price growth continues at a double-digit pace as rate hikes fuel competition
As demand further outpaced supply in January, the U.S. median listing price held near record-highs and continued to rise at a double-digit annual pace. While 2022 is forecasted to be a seller's market, annual home price growth is expected to moderate from the 2021 pace. This is partly due to looming rate hikes, which will cut into buyers' ability to meet high asking prices and have already begun to rise more quickly than anticipated. Listing price data is already showing some loss of momentum, as the acceleration was smaller in January over December compared to December over November. Still, the affordability of monthly housing costs will increasingly challenge buyers – especially first-timers, who typically have less flexible budgets and face the added financial burden of skyrocketing rents.

• For the second month in a row, the U.S. median listing price held at $375,000. Listing prices increased at a slightly faster annual pace in January (+10.3%) than in December (+10.0%), but the change was smaller than from November (+8.6%) to December.
• Relative to the national rate, home prices posted smaller yearly gains (+6.1%) in the 50 largest U.S. metros, partially due to inventory gains in smaller-sized homes. Price growth was similar on a square foot basis, up 11.8% year-over-year in large metros and 13.5% year-over-year nationwide.
• Listing prices grew at a double-digit annual pace in the southern (+11.2%) and western (+10.0%) regions, which dominated the top 5 list of markets with the biggest annual home price increases: Las Vegas (+35.3%), Tampa, Fla. (+28.7%), Austin, Texas (+28.2%), Orlando, Fla. (+25.0%) and Miami (+24.8%).

January 2022 Housing Metrics – 50 Largest U.S. Metros

Metro	Median Listing Price	Median Listing Price YoY	Median Listing Price per Sq. Ft. YoY	Active Listing Count YoY	New Listing Count YoY	Median Days on Market	Median Days on Market YoY	Price Reduced Share	Price Reduced Share YoY
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Ga.	$386,000	9.6%	11.9%	-22.2%	-9.1%	46	-8	6.8%	0.0%
Austin-Round Rock, Texas	$545,000	28.2%	19.8%	-3.3%	-20.9%	46	-12	7.6%	4.8%
Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, Md.	$299,000	-6.5%	4.6%	-13.1%	-9.1%	56	-4	8.7%	0.2%
Birmingham-Hoover, Ala.	$265,000	0.8%	8.1%	-31.2%	-7.7%	57	-8	6.3%	-1.7%
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, Mass.-N.H.	$725,000	9.8%	7.2%	-33.4%	-25.3%	58	-6	5.7%	-2.1%
Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, N.Y.	$217,000	-1.2%	7.6%	-8.1%	-0.8%	73	-6	2.6%	-1.9%
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, N.C.-S.C.	$400,000	8.5%	17.7%	-34.0%	-12.6%	45	-10	6.1%	-2.1%
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, Ill.-Ind.-Wis.	$315,000	-4.4%	1.3%	-29.9%	-21.1%	60	-4	7.0%	-1.0%
Cincinnati, Ohio-Ky.-Ind.	$300,000	-1.6%	10.0%	-15.9%	-10.3%	63	0	7.7%	0.0%
Cleveland-Elyria, Ohio	$177,000	-10.6%	4.2%	-16.5%	7.6%	61	-6	7.5%	-2.0%
Columbus, Ohio	$300,000	0.0%	12.2%	-13.5%	-4.4%	43	-9	8.4%	-1.5%
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas	$400,000	14.3%	17.5%	-38.9%	-16.9%	43	-10	4.5%	-3.3%
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colo.	$640,000	21.0%	10.7%	-39.6%	-25.9%	35	-14	3.0%	-2.9%
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, Mich.	$210,000	-16.0%	-0.4%	-8.5%	-1.9%	55	-1	10.9%	0.8%
Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, Conn.	$350,000	16.7%	22.2%	-61.7%	-13.4%	72	10	4.3%	-4.5%
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, Texas	$358,000	8.4%	13.2%	-24.3%	0.9%	56	-4	8.4%	-1.4%
Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, Ind.	$275,000	6.0%	13.1%	-28.2%	1.6%	51	-13	8.2%	-2.7%
Jacksonville, Fla.	$385,000	20.7%	22.1%	-30.6%	-2.2%	52	-12	5.3%	-1.5%
Kansas City, Mo.-Kan.	$369,000	10.4%	15.3%	-15.2%	-16.9%	69	-1	4.2%	-1.1%
Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, Nev.	$460,000	35.3%	26.6%	-38.0%	-2.5%	38	-16	8.8%	-3.4%
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, Calif.	$899,000	-10.0%	2.9%	-40.6%	-17.9%	44	-10	4.1%	-1.8%
Louisville/Jefferson County, Ky.-Ind.	$259,000	4.0%	10.1%	-11.1%	-11.0%	49	0	8.9%	-1.8%
Memphis, Tenn.-Miss.-Ark.	$221,000	-8.1%	20.7%	-15.0%	-8.4%	49	-11	5.3%	-0.5%
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, Fla.	$499,000	24.8%	19.8%	-54.4%	-18.5%	65	-29	5.5%	-3.5%
Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wis.	$285,000	-3.4%	5.0%	-16.5%	-5.3%	59	-3	6.9%	-0.7%
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, Minn.-Wis.	$370,000	3.5%	8.1%	-16.5%	-8.7%	58	2	4.7%	-0.3%
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, Tenn.	$453,000	13.8%	19.2%	-48.8%	-29.8%	29	-7	6.5%	-1.6%
New Orleans-Metairie, La.	$347,000	6.8%	7.8%	-32.0%	-6.1%	64	-8	8.7%	-3.0%
New York-Newark-Jersey City, N.Y.-N.J.-Pa.	$675,000	4.0%	25.6%	-19.3%	-12.7%	79	-6	5.8%	-1.7%
Oklahoma City, Okla.	$295,000	10.3%	14.5%	-23.4%	-14.3%	56	0	6.9%	-2.2%
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Fla.	$395,000	25.0%	25.1%	-52.4%	2.3%	46	-24	5.3%	-4.4%
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md.	$300,000	-7.4%	4.0%	-12.6%	-11.1%	65	-5	7.7%	-1.2%
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, Ariz.	$495,000	19.3%	18.9%	-10.2%	-15.1%	40	-5	7.4%	0.5%
Pittsburgh, Pa.	$210,000	-13.8%	-5.6%	-12.4%	-10.2%	79	-8	9.0%	0.3%
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Ore.-Wash.	$550,000	10.0%	14.3%	-25.6%	-15.0%	47	-9	13.3%	0.5%
Providence-Warwick, R.I.-Mass.	$435,000	0.7%	10.5%	-29.8%	-22.7%	53	-6	4.5%	-0.2%
Raleigh, N.C.	$425,000	8.9%	22.5%	-50.8%	-40.0%	36	-17	5.7%	0.3%
Richmond, Va.	$375,000	2.7%	11.6%	-36.1%	-28.6%	56	1	2.4%	-3.5%
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif.	$544,000	11.1%	15.7%	-11.8%	-0.5%	44	-3	4.8%	-0.5%
Rochester, N.Y.	$200,000	-23.0%	-9.2%	-32.9%	-11.0%	41	-14	5.4%	-1.9%
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, Calif.	$620,000	7.8%	15.8%	-6.9%	-1.9%	40	-6	6.1%	0.6%
San Antonio-New Braunfels, Texas	$350,000	18.6%	20.3%	-17.8%	-1.8%	56	-8	6.2%	-1.9%
San Diego-Carlsbad, Calif.	$840,000	3.1%	6.3%	-39.1%	-10.6%	35	-3	3.7%	-2.1%
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, Calif.	$949,000	-4.6%	2.4%	-34.9%	-3.0%	39	-7	2.9%	-1.3%
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif.	$1,298,000	8.6%	11.3%	-51.8%	-12.6%	35	-7	2.1%	-3.5%
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash.	$695,000	8.6%	-3.2%	-46.3%	-13.2%	39	-13	2.2%	-1.8%
St. Louis, Mo.-Ill.	$249,000	1.3%	8.0%	-25.3%	-9.7%	63	-14	7.2%	-0.2%
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla.	$385,000	28.7%	29.3%	-43.7%	-5.2%	44	-13	5.0%	-4.4%
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, Va.-N.C.	$320,000	3.5%	10.1%	-33.6%	-31.6%	41	-7	7.8%	0.7%
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-Va.-Md.-W. Va.	$500,000	2.2%	4.8%	-22.6%	-17.1%	51	1	5.5%	-1.5%

Methodology
Realtor.com^® housing data as of January 2022. Listings include active inventory of existing single-family homes and condos/townhomes for the given level of geography; new construction is excluded unless listed via an MLS. In this release, price adjustments are defined as home listings that had their price reduced in January 2022; listings that had their prices increased during the month are excluded.

Note: With the release of its January 2022 housing trends report, Realtor.com^® incorporated a new and improved methodology for capturing and reporting housing inventory trends and metrics (see more details here). As a result of these changes, this release is not directly comparable with previous data releases and reports. However, future data releases, including historical data, will consistently apply the new methodology.

About Realtor.com^®
Realtor.com^® makes buying, selling, renting and living in homes easier and more rewarding for everyone. Realtor.com^® pioneered the world of digital real estate more than 25 years ago, and today through its website and mobile apps offers a marketplace where people can learn about their options, trust in the transparency of information provided to them, and get services and resources that are personalized to their needs. Using proprietary data science and machine learning technology, Realtor.com^® pairs buyers and sellers with local agents in their market, helping take the guesswork out of buying and selling a home. For professionals, Realtor.com^® is a trusted provider of consumer connections and branding solutions that help them succeed in today's on-demand world. Realtor.com^® is operated by News Corp [Nasdaq: NWS, NWSA] [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc. For more information, visit Realtor.com^®.

Media Contact
rachel.conner@move.com 

 

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SOURCE Realtor.com

FAQ

What were the January 2022 housing market trends?

January 2022 saw homes selling at a record pace of 61 days on average, with a median listing price of $375,000, a 10.3% increase year-over-year.

How did active listings change in January 2022?

Active listings in January 2022 dropped by 28.4% compared to the previous year, continuing a trend of declining inventory.

What factors contributed to the decline in new housing listings in January 2022?

The decline in new listings by 9.1% may be attributed to seller hesitation influenced by uncertainties such as the Omicron variant.

What is the forecast for the housing market in 2022 based on January trends?

The forecast suggests a competitive housing market in 2022, with strong buyer demand but limited inventory challenges impacting sales.