(West Des Moines, Iowa) –  November 2022 unit sales of single-family homes were down 29.5 percent compared to November 2021, but not unexpected with the yearlong rise in home mortgage interest rates. Overall, year-to-date unit sales is only down 9 percent according to the Housing Trends by the Iowa Association of REALTORS® (IAR).

2,638 single-family homes and 332 Townhouse-Condo homes sold in November 2022. The national mid-term elections also typically play a part in home sale activity as well as overall economic factors such as inflation and unemployment. Despite all this, 2022 appears to be returning to a more normal state of activity compared to the last two years.

Another market indicator is the median sale price of homes. During the month of November, the median sale price of single-family homes was flat at $191,000 compared to $192,000 in November of last year. Townhome-Condo median sale prices proved to be the leader by seeing a 10 percent increase over November of 2021 and a 2022 year-to-date increase of just over 12 percent. The median sale price of a townhome-condo in the month of November was $219,950.

The number of homes for sale in 2022 appear to have finally started trending upward since the low count of 5,200 homes for sale in April/May. November for-sale inventory levels were close to 6,900 homes for sale bucking a trend of decreasing inventory ever since pre-covid years. We still have a way to go to bring our number of homes for sale back to more desirable level, but any increase in inventory is welcomed.

The average days on market continue to be around 32 days for single family and 44 days for townhome-condos but with holidays in the mix, this is a good sign that buyer activity is remaining strong. The winter months are the best opportunity to homebuyers to be able to negotiate compared to the spring/summer months when homes have been selling at or above list price. The average single-family home price during November sold at 97.5 percent of asking price.

The outlook for homebuyers and sellers across the state for 2023 is very promising. Expectations of mortgage interest rates settling to around 5 to 5 ½ percent for next year will give homebuyers confidence that they are not going to be priced out of affordability due to continued rising interest rates.

Homeowners that have been sitting on the sidelines also watching interest rates will be ready to finally jump into the for-sale market in 2023 adding much needed inventory for homebuyers.

2022 IAR President Byron Menke says for those asking “Is winter a good time to buy or sell a home?,” the months of November through January are good times before the spring market wakes up. Buyers can look for homes at a little slower pace and historically home prices are at their lowest during these months. Homeowners also recognize that they are also able to take advantage of lower purchase prices when they sell and become homebuyers.”