Home prices continue to rise in region as inventory shrinks

Baltimore-area homes sale prices were up again in May, with the stock of homes for sale continuing to decline, according to data provided by MarketStats by ShowingTime based on listing activity from Bright MLS, the region’s multiple listing service.

It was the 33rd consecutive month of declining year-over-year inventory in homes for sale. But the inventory drop appears to be slowing, as April was the first month in nearly two years that the decline was below 10 percent. There were 9,822 active listings at the end of May, 6.4 percent fewer than a year earlier.

Themediansale price for the region rose to $275,000, up $1,375 from last year and $7,100 — 2.7 percent — from last month. It was the highest May price of the decade.

Sales volume and new contract activity were both down a bit from last year. the sales of 3,850 homes closed last month, down 2.9 percent compared with May 2017, but up 15 percent from April.

At 15 days, the median number of days homes spent on the market was down four days from last year and three days from last month. Baltimore City has the longest stretch on the market at a median of 25 days, while Howard County had the shortest time for sale at 8 days.

Howard County continues to have the highest average sale price at $420,000, though it was down2.9 percent from last year. AnneArundel had the second highest average sale price at $342,250, basically flat compared with last year. Carroll was third in average price at $312,500, down slightly from last year.