Seller's Market The supply of homes in Maryland remains staggeringly low and prices rapidly are increasing, but real estate experts urge buyers to be patient.
Predictably, as demand outpaces supply, home prices have increased. Buyers, however, are being urged not to rush into making a purchase out of fear they’ll be priced out of the market.
“While the active inventory across the state continues to be below what is considered a normal level, we are seeing steady increases in home prices across the region. Our hope is this will encourage sellers to list their properties to create more active inventory.” Maryland Realtors President Boyd Campbell said in a statement. "Buyers should continue the typical due diligence with the proper contingencies despite the heated/competitive market. Regrets can be very painful and expensive after the fact when purchasing a home."
Active inventory for homes in the Baltimore area decreased year-over-year in March by 10 percent to 8,507 units. That marks 31 consecutive months active inventory declined in the Baltimore area, according to data provided by MarketStats by ShowingTime based on listing activity from Bright MLS.
Single-family detached inventories were down 15.9 percent, condo inventories were down 13.5 percent, but townhome inventories were up by less than 1 percent. Inventories remained below both 5-year and 10-year averages. The number of homes for-sale sat at 50 percent of what they were at the same time in 2009.
Suburban Maryland submarkets in the Washington D.C. metro area experienced a mix of results in terms new listings.
Prince George’s County was one of only two markets in the Washington area, which includes Northern Virginia, where the number of new listings increased year over year. New listings in the county were up 5.5 percent. In Montgomery County new listings dropped 9.5 percent. In the overall Washington market new listings dropped by 3.1 percent.
Statewide, according to statistics from Maryland Association of Realtors, inventory in March fell by nearly 10.5 percent year over year. That drops the months of inventory to 2.9 from 3.1 months in March 2017. A balanced market is reached with 6-months of inventory. Anything less is considered a seller’s market.
Jimmy Rupert is well aware of the sellers market adding, "If you are thinking of selling your home in the near future, I'd suggest you do so now, or within the coming weeks. Now is the time to receive highest return on investment. Our team has buyers lined up and eager to purchase.”
The reasons for the lack of supply across Maryland is widely attributed to a dearth of entry level homes being built. According to some industry experts, like the Maryland Building Industry Association, fewer homes under construction can be attributed to several factors. Those hurdles include state environmental regulations and various “not in my back yard” restrictions passed in suburban jurisdictions to prevent further development.
One jurisdictions set to potentially benefit from those tough building conditions is Baltimore. The city’s zoning allows for rapid residential development and could be positioned to attract entry-level buyers priced out of the suburbs. Mayor Catherine Pugh’s administration has also taken steps to streamline permitting making dealing with the city easier for builders and contractors.
Home prices in Baltimore had the second steepest price increase by percentage year-over-year in March. Prices in the city increased by 10.3 percent compared to the metro area average of 5.7 percent. Despite significant growth in home prices year-over-year, Baltimore still had home prices in the area. The median home price for the city in March was $142,500. But city’s schools, crime and high property taxes make it a tough sell for many families looking to buy.
As supply continues to dwindle the cost to buy a home throughout continues to increase. Statewide the median home price increased 5.4 percent to $283,405.
Last month Median home prices in the Baltimore metro area reached $259,000. That’s the highest median price for March in a decade.
Carroll County lead the Baltimore metro area in terms of year-over-year increase in median home prices by percentage. The median price for a home in that jurisdiction increased by 11.5 percent.
Howard County experienced a year-over-year decline in median home prices, slipping by nearly 1 percent, but remained the most expensive place to buy a home in the metro area.
In the Washington metro area home prices in suburban Maryland also increased.
Median home prices in Montgomery County went up 6.6 percent year over year to $437,000. Prince George’s County’s median home prices climbed by less than 1 percent to $435,000.
The Washington metro area, including the city and Northern Virginia submarkets, median home prices grew 3.6 percent to an average of $435,000.
During a March appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” Mike Fratantoni, of the Mortgage Banker’s Association, said home builders are doing their best to keep up with the insatiable demand for housing but aren’t able to keep up. But he didn’t expect that to be a problem for the housing market and expected the market to keep humming along, at least in the mid-term outlook.
“There's just going to be this wave of housing demand hitting the economy over the next four to five years. And we think it's going to bolster steady growth over that time period," he said during his appearance.
Predictably, as demand outpaces supply, home prices have increased. Buyers, however, are being urged not to rush into making a purchase out of fear they’ll be priced out of the market.
“While the active inventory across the state continues to be below what is considered a normal level, we are seeing steady increases in home prices across the region. Our hope is this will encourage sellers to list their properties to create more active inventory.” Maryland Realtors President Boyd Campbell said in a statement. "Buyers should continue the typical due diligence with the proper contingencies despite the heated/competitive market. Regrets can be very painful and expensive after the fact when purchasing a home."
Active inventory for homes in the Baltimore area decreased year-over-year in March by 10 percent to 8,507 units. That marks 31 consecutive months active inventory declined in the Baltimore area, according to data provided by MarketStats by ShowingTime based on listing activity from Bright MLS.
Single-family detached inventories were down 15.9 percent, condo inventories were down 13.5 percent, but townhome inventories were up by less than 1 percent. Inventories remained below both 5-year and 10-year averages. The number of homes for-sale sat at 50 percent of what they were at the same time in 2009.
Suburban Maryland submarkets in the Washington D.C. metro area experienced a mix of results in terms new listings.
Prince George’s County was one of only two markets in the Washington area, which includes Northern Virginia, where the number of new listings increased year over year. New listings in the county were up 5.5 percent. In Montgomery County new listings dropped 9.5 percent. In the overall Washington market new listings dropped by 3.1 percent.
Statewide, according to statistics from Maryland Association of Realtors, inventory in March fell by nearly 10.5 percent year over year. That drops the months of inventory to 2.9 from 3.1 months in March 2017. A balanced market is reached with 6-months of inventory. Anything less is considered a seller’s market.
Jimmy Rupert is well aware of the sellers market adding, "If you are thinking of selling your home in the near future, I'd suggest you do so now, or within the coming weeks. Now is the time to receive highest return on investment. Our team has buyers lined up and eager to purchase.”
The reasons for the lack of supply across Maryland is widely attributed to a dearth of entry level homes being built. According to some industry experts, like the Maryland Building Industry Association, fewer homes under construction can be attributed to several factors. Those hurdles include state environmental regulations and various “not in my back yard” restrictions passed in suburban jurisdictions to prevent further development.
One jurisdictions set to potentially benefit from those tough building conditions is Baltimore. The city’s zoning allows for rapid residential development and could be positioned to attract entry-level buyers priced out of the suburbs. Mayor Catherine Pugh’s administration has also taken steps to streamline permitting making dealing with the city easier for builders and contractors.
Home prices in Baltimore had the second steepest price increase by percentage year-over-year in March. Prices in the city increased by 10.3 percent compared to the metro area average of 5.7 percent. Despite significant growth in home prices year-over-year, Baltimore still had home prices in the area. The median home price for the city in March was $142,500. But city’s schools, crime and high property taxes make it a tough sell for many families looking to buy.
As supply continues to dwindle the cost to buy a home throughout continues to increase. Statewide the median home price increased 5.4 percent to $283,405.
Last month Median home prices in the Baltimore metro area reached $259,000. That’s the highest median price for March in a decade.
Carroll County lead the Baltimore metro area in terms of year-over-year increase in median home prices by percentage. The median price for a home in that jurisdiction increased by 11.5 percent.
Howard County experienced a year-over-year decline in median home prices, slipping by nearly 1 percent, but remained the most expensive place to buy a home in the metro area.
In the Washington metro area home prices in suburban Maryland also increased.
Median home prices in Montgomery County went up 6.6 percent year over year to $437,000. Prince George’s County’s median home prices climbed by less than 1 percent to $435,000.
The Washington metro area, including the city and Northern Virginia submarkets, median home prices grew 3.6 percent to an average of $435,000.
During a March appearance on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” Mike Fratantoni, of the Mortgage Banker’s Association, said home builders are doing their best to keep up with the insatiable demand for housing but aren’t able to keep up. But he didn’t expect that to be a problem for the housing market and expected the market to keep humming along, at least in the mid-term outlook.
“There's just going to be this wave of housing demand hitting the economy over the next four to five years. And we think it's going to bolster steady growth over that time period," he said during his appearance.
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