July Home Sales Dropped 19% Year Over Year to Lowest Level Since Mid-2020

Rhea-AI Summary

In July, home sales in the U.S. fell by 19.3%, marking the largest year-over-year decline since the pandemic began, according to a report from Redfin. The drop in sales, down 4.1% month-over-month, was influenced by rising mortgage rates of over 5.4%%. New listings also decreased by 13.5% year-over-year. Home prices increased by 7.7%, the slowest growth since June 2020. Additionally, 21% of sellers reduced their asking prices, the highest percentage since 2012, signaling market adjustments.

Positive

• Median sale price rose to $412,700, despite a month-over-month decrease of 3.3%.
• Home prices increased by 7.7% year-over-year, indicating some resilience in pricing.

Negative

• Home sales dropped 19.3% year-over-year, the most significant decline in over a year.
• New listings decreased 13.5% year-over-year, suggesting fewer homes are available for sale.
• 21% of sellers had to lower their asking prices, the highest share since 2012.

New listings were also down, with some prospective sellers staying put as price growth slowed

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- (NASDAQ: RDFN) — Home sales dropped 19.3% year over year in July to their lowest level since the beginning of the pandemic, when the housing market was at a near standstill, according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage. That’s the biggest annual decline in U.S. home sales in more than a year, a reflection of the continued cooling effects of 5.4%-plus mortgage rates and nationwide economic uncertainty.

Home sales dipped 4.1% from the previous month, the sixth-straight monthly decline. Some prospective homebuyers were sidelined because they were priced out of the market; others were wary of potential home-value declines in the near future.

Home prices increased at their slowest pace since June 2020, rising 7.7%. Price growth dipping into the single digits after two years of double-digit increases reflects months of slumping homebuyer demand, homes sitting on the market longer than before and dwindling competition.

Sellers also backed off, with many hesitant to sell for less than what they would have gotten at the height of the pandemic homebuying frenzy. Plus, many homeowners are staying put because they have a low mortgage rate compared to today’s rates. New listings dropped 13.5% year over year, the biggest decline in over a year. Many of the sellers who did list their homes had to settle for less. Twenty-one percent of sellers dropped their asking price in July, the highest share since at least 2012, when Redfin started tracking this data.

“The buyers who are still in the game are finally getting a break from bidding wars, which means they can be picky,” said Raleigh, NC Redfin agent Pam Lewis. “Three months ago, buyers were saying, ‘Get me a building with four walls and I’ll make it work.’ Now they have some choices. They don’t want a home if it doesn’t have the fenced-in yard or guest room on their wish list, and they want a $20,000 price reduction if a home has been on the market for more than a week. I’m telling buyers they’re not likely to see their property values decrease over time, but they may not appreciate as fast as homeowners have become accustomed to in the past few years.”

National Highlights
Market Summary	July 2022			Month-Over-Month		Year-Over-Year
Median sale price	$	412,700		-3.3	%	7.7	%
Homes sold, seasonally adjusted		501,100		-4.1	%	-19.3	%
New listings, seasonally adjusted		626,900		-0.3	%	-13.5	%
All homes for sale, seasonally adjusted		1,513,900		1.6	%	3.9	%
Median days on market		21		3		6
Months of supply		2.1		0.4		0.7
Sold above list		47.3	%	-8.0 pp	†	-8.2 pp	†
Median off-market Redfin Estimate	$	419,600		0.0	%	19.6	%
Average sale-to-list		101.0	%	-1.2 pp	†	-1.2 pp	†
Share of for-sale homes with a price drop		20.9	%	4.1 pp	†	9.7 pp	†
Average 30-year fixed mortgage rate		5.41	%	-0.11 pp	†	+2.54 pp	†
† - “pp” = percentage-point change

To view the full report, including charts and metro-level data, please visit: https://www.redfin.com/news/home-sales-drop-july-2022

About Redfin

Redfin (www.redfin.com) is a technology-powered real estate company. We help people find a place to live with brokerage, instant home-buying (iBuying), rentals, lending, title insurance, and renovations services. We sell homes for more money and charge half the fee. We also run the country's #1 real-estate brokerage site. Our home-buying customers see homes first with on-demand tours, and our lending and title services help them close quickly. Customers selling a home can take an instant cash offer from Redfin or have our renovations crew fix up their home to sell for top dollar. Our rentals business empowers millions nationwide to find apartments and houses for rent. Since launching in 2006, we've saved customers more than $1 billion in commissions. We serve more than 100 markets across the U.S. and Canada and employ over 6,000 people.

For more information or to contact a local Redfin real estate agent, visit www.redfin.com. To learn about housing market trends and download data, visit the Redfin Data Center. To be added to Redfin's press release distribution list, email press@redfin.com. To view Redfin's press center, click here.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220822005096/en/

Redfin Journalist Services:

Ally Braun, 206-588-6863

press@redfin.com

Source: Redfin

FAQ

What was the percentage drop in home sales for July 2022?

Home sales dropped by 19.3% year-over-year in July 2022.

What were the current mortgage rates reported by Redfin?

The average mortgage rate reported by Redfin was over 5.4%.

How many new listings were recorded in July 2022?

New listings dropped by 13.5% year-over-year in July 2022.

What was the median sale price of homes in July 2022?

The median sale price of homes in July 2022 was $412,700.

How much did home prices increase year-over-year as of July 2022?

Home prices increased by 7.7% year-over-year in July 2022.