The Houston Association of Realtors released their November Market Report on December 14, 2022. This report revealed that single-family home sales fell 30.4 percent, with 5,827 units sold compared to 8,374 in November 2021—for the steepest monthly sales decline of 2022. These numbers show that, on a year-to-date basis, the market now trails 2021’s record-setting volume by 8.8 percent. HAR notes , however, that “compared to November 2019 – before the pandemic – sales were down just 8.4 percent despite the doubling of interest rates”
HAR’s analysis describes the market as enduring “a perfect storm of economic challenges, including inflation, elevated interest rates and pricing, limited inventory and the start of the holiday shopping season.” Active listings (the total number of available properties) is up 51.3 percent compared to last year, but remains below pre-pandemic levels.
“Because Houston housing was hyper-energized at the beginning of the year, concern arose when interest rates increased, and we began experiencing a consistent decline in sales volume. It’s important to maintain perspective by acknowledging that our market is battling the same forces as the rest of the country, between higher interest rates and prices, inflation, and limited inventory. Fortunately, the Houston area has weathered the downturn better than many other markets.” HAR Chair Jennifer Wauhob, with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Gary Greene
The actual time it took to sell a home, Days on Market, went from 35 to 48 days. Months of inventory stands at 2.9 months compared to 1.5 months a year earlier-- the largest number of months' supply since July 2020. The National supply is 3.3 months, according to NAR.
In terms of price, single-family homes rose 5.8 percent in November to $403,589 –significantly lower than May’s record high of $438,301. The median price went up by 7.0 percent to $332,000, also below the record of $354,000, from this past June.
November Sales Performance by housing segment:
- $1 - $99,999: 13.9 percent decrease
- $100,000 - $149,999: 29.6 percent decrease
- $150,000 - $249,999: 44.6 percent decrease
- $250,000 - $499,999: 27.4 percent decrease
- $500,000 - $999,999: 19.0 percent decrease
- $1M and above: 23.7 percent decrease
Existing Single-Family Homes
HAR also tracks sales figures for existing single-family homes without including new construction. November’s existing home sales by themselves totaled 4,214, down 38.1 percent 2021. The average existing home sales price rose 4.3 percent to $397,178 while the median existing home sales price increased 2.5 percent to $312,500. Those figures are also significantly below the record-setting prices from earlier this year.