Realtor.com® December Housing Report: Signs Point to Increases in Number of Home Listings and Stable Prices
In December the Number of Homes Actively for Sale Grew 4.4% Year-Over-Year Indicating a More Active Market and Higher Levels of Inventory for Prospective Buyers
SANTA CLARA, Calif., Jan. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- For the first time since May 2023 home shoppers are seeing a larger number of unsold homes on the market, according to the Realtor.com® December Monthly Housing Trends Report, released today. Looking ahead, as mortgage rates have been on a downward trend since the beginning of November, Realtor.com® anticipates a positive impact on home-selling sentiment and the possibility that more new listings will enter the market.
"Across the U.S. we're seeing improvements in inventory levels, especially in the South, which experienced a 7.7% increase in active listings year-over-year," said Danielle Hale, chief economist, Realtor.com® "While the uptick in December inventory levels is encouraging, it is important to note that two-thirds of outstanding mortgages in the U.S. have a rate under 4% and more than 90% have a rate less than 6%. We are optimistic that inventory levels are moving in a positive direction, but the number of homes on the market is still low relative to pre-pandemic levels. Some sellers are clearly motivated already, but other households may hold out for lower rates before selling or moving to new homes."
On the Up and Up
Homebuyers typically avoid big moves during the December holiday season unless they absolutely must sell or buy, leading to generally different real estate activity than what is experienced in the peak summer season. Though the market is still not where it was pre-pandemic as active inventory sits 34.3% below typical 2017 to 2019 levels, in December 2023 home sellers were active with 9.1% more newly listed homes compared to last year. When looking at the month-over-month change between November and December, a time when the decline in inventory has historically hovered between 6.8% and 13.2%, this year there was a more modest 5.5% decrease, indicating a much smaller than typical drop for this time of year.
December 2023 Housing Metrics – National
Metric |
Change over Dec 2022 |
Change over Dec 2019 |
Median listing price |
+1.2% (to $410,000) |
+36.7 % |
Active listings |
+4.9 % |
-30.9 % |
New listings |
+9.1 % |
-11.8 % |
Median days on market |
-4 days (to 61 days) |
-16 days |
Share of active listings with price reductions |
-1.4 percentage points (to 12.7%) |
+2.2 percentage points |
Southern Belles
When examining the 50 largest metros, 23 experienced increased inventory levels year-over-year, with Memphis (+28.5%), New Orleans (25.5%) and San Antonio (20.9%) experiencing the most growth among them. Though this growth is promising, the country is still seeing lower inventory levels as a whole relative to pre-pandemic times with the exception of San Antonio (+12.8%), Austin (+11.7%) and New Orleans (+11.6%), which saw higher levels of inventory in December 2023 compared to typical 2017 to 2019 levels.
Prices Continue to Stabilize and Properties Move Faster
The median price of homes for sale in December remained relatively stable compared to the same time last year, growing by 1.2% with a few standout places experiencing a decrease including the surprising Nor Cal suburb of San Jose, which saw a decrease of 7.1% in median listing price year-over-year, as well as San Antonio (-3.9%) and Memphis (-2.5%).
When it comes to days on market, homes are moving quicker than before. Generally, homes spent 61 days on the market, which is four days shorter than December 2022 and about two weeks shorter than before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Additional details and full analysis of the market inventory levels, price fluctuations and stabilization as well as days on market tallies can be found in the Realtor.com® December Monthly Housing Report.
December 2023 Housing Overview by Top 50 Largest Metros
Metro Area |
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 Y-Y (Days) |
Price Reduced Share |
Price Reduced Share Y-Y (Percentage Points) |
$415,000 |
3.8 % |
4.2 % |
-3.6 % |
-5.0 % |
53 |
-6 |
13.0 % |
-3.9 pp |
|
$540,000 |
2.9 % |
2.3 % |
3.4 % |
20.9 % |
74 |
2 |
20.0 % |
-5.6 pp |
|
$345,000 |
4.5 % |
4.9 % |
-4.8 % |
-3.6 % |
46 |
-5 |
13.0 % |
0.6 pp |
|
$287,000 |
4.2 % |
6.1 % |
13.8 % |
-11.1 % |
60 |
-3 |
14.4 % |
-0.1 pp |
|
$800,000 |
6.8 % |
9.9 % |
-7.8 % |
9.9 % |
53 |
-5 |
9.1 % |
-2.1 pp |
|
$249,000 |
8.3 % |
10.0 % |
-2.5 % |
8.8 % |
59 |
-2 |
5.5 % |
-1.6 pp |
|
$400,000 |
0.9 % |
5.9 % |
-7.6 % |
-3.4 % |
53 |
-4 |
12.9 % |
-4 pp |
|
$350,000 |
8.4 % |
6.0 % |
-18.2 % |
-7.3 % |
51 |
-3 |
11.2 % |
0 pp |
|
$335,000 |
3.1 % |
6.0 % |
17.5 % |
10.3 % |
44 |
-7 |
11.5 % |
1.9 pp |
|
$220,000 |
15.8 % |
9.3 % |
-3.1 % |
16.1 % |
51 |
-5 |
13.4 % |
-1.4 pp |
|
$360,000 |
9.1 % |
6.2 % |
8.6 % |
-7.3 % |
49 |
-1 |
18.0 % |
1 pp |
|
$435,000 |
-0.9 % |
1.2 % |
6.4 % |
4.4 % |
58 |
-1 |
17.4 % |
-2.3 pp |
|
$610,000 |
1.7 % |
6.3 % |
7.1 % |
3.1 % |
61 |
2 |
12.6 % |
-5.8 pp |
|
$235,000 |
2.3 % |
5.5 % |
-15.2 % |
-10.5 % |
50 |
-2 |
12.3 % |
-5.7 pp |
|
$390,000 |
6.8 % |
6.6 % |
-14.7 % |
11.5 % |
45 |
-10 |
6.7 % |
-0.8 pp |
|
$360,000 |
0.0 % |
1.7 % |
6.7 % |
4.8 % |
56 |
-3 |
13.2 % |
-2.1 pp |
|
$304,000 |
3.2 % |
6.2 % |
7.6 % |
-7.3 % |
57 |
4 |
19.3 % |
0.4 pp |
|
$408,000 |
4.8 % |
4.5 % |
2.5 % |
10.0 % |
61 |
-3 |
14.8 % |
-6.6 pp |
|
$400,000 |
-2.5 % |
0.4 % |
0.0 % |
7.4 % |
64 |
-7 |
9.9 % |
-0.8 pp |
|
$460,000 |
3.8 % |
3.3 % |
-45.3 % |
-11.3 % |
54 |
-19 |
14.8 % |
-5.9 pp |
|
$1,100,000 |
17.6 % |
10.5 % |
-18.2 % |
14.6 % |
54 |
-7 |
7.5 % |
-3.6 pp |
|
$300,000 |
1.7 % |
4.8 % |
4.2 % |
8.4 % |
50 |
-2 |
16.3 % |
-0.9 pp |
|
$318,000 |
-2.2 % |
3.6 % |
28.5 % |
35.7 % |
63 |
2 |
17.9 % |
-0.2 pp |
|
$580,000 |
-2.5 % |
2.8 % |
19.0 % |
13.5 % |
61 |
-5 |
13.9 % |
0.1 pp |
|
$335,000 |
-0.9 % |
3.4 % |
0.3 % |
-5.2 % |
44 |
-2 |
14.2 % |
2.9 pp |
|
$420,000 |
5.1 % |
1.8 % |
2.6 % |
2.0 % |
55 |
-3 |
10.4 % |
-1.1 pp |
|
$555,000 |
7.8 % |
5.9 % |
4.2 % |
0.2 % |
44 |
-4 |
14.9 % |
-3.4 pp |
|
$325,000 |
1.9 % |
0.6 % |
25.5 % |
19.2 % |
78 |
3 |
11.3 % |
0 pp |
|
$748,000 |
11.6 % |
16.5 % |
-14.2 % |
3.4 % |
71 |
-4 |
5.8 % |
-1.1 pp |
|
$320,000 |
-1.5 % |
0.1 % |
15.1 % |
27.3 % |
58 |
-2 |
17.4 % |
-1.9 pp |
|
$439,000 |
2.1 % |
3.5 % |
16.7 % |
19.7 % |
58 |
-9 |
16.1 % |
-2.3 pp |
|
$340,000 |
4.6 % |
6.3 % |
-7.6 % |
1.6 % |
56 |
-5 |
12.0 % |
0 pp |
|
$527,000 |
10.9 % |
2.9 % |
-23.2 % |
-14.0 % |
53 |
-16 |
20.9 % |
-5.5 pp |
|
$230,000 |
15.0 % |
8.8 % |
-1.0 % |
6.5 % |
66 |
-6 |
12.9 % |
1.3 pp |
|
$600,000 |
1.7 % |
2.6 % |
7.5 % |
15.1 % |
66 |
1 |
12.1 % |
-1.2 pp |
|
$500,000 |
5.2 % |
0.9 % |
-3.8 % |
-5.3 % |
45 |
0 |
8.3 % |
-1.7 pp |
|
$448,000 |
-0.1 % |
4.4 % |
-17.7 % |
-5.7 % |
63 |
-5 |
10.2 % |
-6.8 pp |
|
$430,000 |
13.7 % |
8.0 % |
4.6 % |
-3.8 % |
54 |
1 |
9.0 % |
-3.4 pp |
|
$579,000 |
2.5 % |
6.2 % |
-17.0 % |
13.8 % |
59 |
-7 |
10.8 % |
-4.1 pp |
|
$250,000 |
8.7 % |
8.1 % |
-4.9 % |
7.5 % |
35 |
-3 |
8.9 % |
-0.3 pp |
|
$625,000 |
6.4 % |
4.6 % |
-19.5 % |
1.0 % |
52 |
-11 |
10.9 % |
-4.2 pp |
|
$336,000 |
-3.9 % |
-0.6 % |
20.9 % |
15.3 % |
68 |
1 |
18.9 % |
-1.9 pp |
|
$980,000 |
9.0 % |
14.3 % |
-17.1 % |
10.3 % |
44 |
-10 |
10.7 % |
-2.8 pp |
|
$998,000 |
0.5 % |
0.5 % |
-15.3 % |
5.2 % |
58 |
-3 |
7.4 % |
-2.5 pp |
|
$1,299,000 |
-7.1 % |
-0.4 % |
-12.9 % |
18.7 % |
43 |
-10 |
6.1 % |
-6.7 pp |
|
$749,000 |
3.3 % |
5.0 % |
-8.4 % |
27.3 % |
57 |
-2 |
9.3 % |
-6.3 pp |
|
$275,000 |
2.2 % |
3.6 % |
10.1 % |
24.1 % |
53 |
0 |
11.4 % |
-0.8 pp |
|
$420,000 |
2.7 % |
5.4 % |
13.5 % |
6.7 % |
57 |
-1 |
19.7 % |
-3.3 pp |
|
$379,000 |
5.3 % |
7.0 % |
3.7 % |
-15.5 % |
45 |
-4 |
16.1 % |
1.7 pp |
|
$590,000 |
4.4 % |
6.2 % |
-15.0 % |
13.8 % |
50 |
-4 |
9.8 % |
-1.6 pp |
Methodology
Realtor.com® housing data as of December 2023. Listings include the active inventory of existing single-family homes and condos/townhomes/rowhomes/co-ops for the given level of geography on Realtor.com®; new construction is excluded unless listed via an MLS that provides listing data to Realtor.com®. Realtor.com® data history goes back to July 2016. 50 largest U.S. metropolitan areas as defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). With the publication of the December 2023 data, metro-level data has been updated to reflect the latest OMB metro area definitions, published July 2023, and historical data has been revised to be consistent with the new geographies.
About Realtor.com®
Realtor.com® is an open real estate marketplace built for everyone. Realtor.com® pioneered the world of digital real estate more than 25 years ago. Today, through its website and mobile apps, Realtor.com® is a trusted guide for consumers, empowering more people to find their way home by breaking down barriers, helping them make the right connections, and creating confidence through expert insights and guidance. For professionals, Realtor.com® is a trusted partner for business growth, offering 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®.
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