Existing Home Prices in Metropolitan Areas Continued to Soar in Q3 2021

According to the Q3 2021 Metropolitan Median Area Price and Affordability report from the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), strong homebuyer demand and limited housing supply has led to median sales prices rising for existing single-family homes in all but one of 183 measured markets in Q3 of 2021.

The NAR found that 78% of 183 markets experienced double-digit year-over-year price increases, fewer than in Q2 of 2021 (94%). Three metro areas saw price gains of over 30% from one year ago, also fewer than the number in Q2 of 2021.

The median sales price of single-family existing homes climbed 16% year-over-year to $363,700, a slower pace in comparison to Q2 of 2021 (22.9%). All four major regions had double-digit year-over-year price growth, led by the Northeast (17.5%), followed by the South (14.9%), the Midwest (10.7%), and the West (10.3%).

In a statement prepared for the release of the Q3 report, Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist said, “Home prices are continuing to move upward, but the rate at which they ascended slowed in the third quarter. I expect more homes to hit the market as early as next year, and that additional inventory, combined with higher mortgage rates, should markedly reduce the speed of price increases.”

“While buyer bidding wars lessened in the third quarter compared to early 2021, consumers still faced stiff competition for homes located in the top ten markets. Most properties were only on the market for a few days before being listed as under contract,” Yun added.