Pa. Housing Prices Increase 16% in March

LEMOYNE, Pa. – Low inventory continues to be a challenge in Pennsylvania’s housing market, leading to a 16% increase in the year-to-year median sales price for March.

According to the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors’ monthly report, housing stock was down 39% in March, compared to the same month in 2020, with an available supply of just  1.78 months.

The lack of inventory and rising demand were the key factors in the median sales price increase, according to President Christopher Raad. The median sales price last month was $185,603, compared to $157,881 a year ago.

Low inventory continues to affect most areas of the state.

“Throughout the first quarter, we’ve seen less than a two-month supply available every month. Ideally, a six-month supply is what you’d like to see for a balanced market,” Raad said in a statement. “We’re seeing about 10,000 fewer listings each month, compared to the same time last year.”

This year, there were 20,423 new listings reported in March, compared to 33,948 in March 2020.

“If more inventory was available, I think we’d see even higher home sales because there’s demand from buyers,” Raad said. “Instead, we’re seeing sales are down slightly in the first quarter of 2021, compared to the first quarter of 2020.”

In the first quarter this year, there were 25,505 sales, compared to 26,360 to the same period in 2020.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.