March’s real estate sales remained steady according to the Housing Trends by the Iowa Association of REALTORS® (IAR). Median sales price rose 13.1% over March 2021.
March’s home sales increased at less than 1% when compared to sales in March 2021.
3,371 homes sold in March 2022. While new properties on the market showed a nice increase from February, new properties were 7.2% lower when compared to new listings in March 2021.
Robin Anderson is the chief economist for the State of Iowa.
But Anderson says the lack of supply is a big constraint on the housing market.
According to the Iowa Association of Realtors, there were nearly 14-and-a-half percent fewer Iowa homes for sale in March compared to the same month last year. The median price for an Iowa home sold last month was over $203,000. That compares to $180,000 in March of last year.
Anderson points to hot spots like Austin, Texas, where appraisals are up 56% since last year. The Iowa Association of Realtors reports Iowa homes are selling 20% faster this spring, averaging about 43 days on the market. Anderson says the rate on a 30-year mortgage is about five percent now and as rates rise, that may lead to a decline in home sales.
About 8,500 single family homes were sold in Iowa during the first three months of this year. That’s a nearly three-and-a-half percent decline from the first quarter of 2021, partially driven by the historically low number of home listings in January. Iowa home sales in the month of March alone were up just under one percent compared to March of last year.
The median sales price for March 2022 was $203,500 compared to $180,000 in March of last year.
The number of homes available for sale continues to be low in many price ranges. The inventory of homes was 14.4% lower than in March 2021 with only 7,336 homes on the market statewide.
Homes sold very quickly in March at an average of 43 days on the market. That is 20% faster than March of 2021.
