Home sales in area are back on the rise
After two months of declines, a total of 3,823 houses changed hands in June
Home sales in the region soared in June after posting two months of declines sparked by the coronavirus pandemic.
Last month, 3,823 homes were sold in the San Antonio-New Braunfels metropolitan area, a 14 percent increase over June of last year, the San Antonio Board of Realtors reported Tuesday.
“The increasing sales numbers display a positive outlook for the housing market in San Antonio and surrounding area, which means we can expect that the remainder of the summer will follow a similar pattern of positive sales,” said Kim Bragman, SABOR’s 2020 chairman of the board.
Prices kept rising: the median price ticked up nearly 5 percent to $251,700, SABOR reported. Pending sales, an indication of future closings, also increased.
“The expansive area of San Antonio, in addition, helps offer a spectrum of homes that also may keep the numbers stable,” Bragman added.
Last month, 67 percent of homes sold were priced between $200,000 and $499,999, and about 25 percent at $199,000 and below. The remainder cost $500,000 or more.
Home sales plummeted 8 percent in April and 20 percent in May as job losses mounted, some prospective buyers held off and some sellers pulled their properties off the market.
John Barrera of Portfolio Alamo Heights KW said he saw activity slow in March, stagnate in April and begin picking up in May. Pentup demand and low interest rates may be contributing to the upswing.
“Interest rates are so low that buyers who are still gainfully employed are purchasing,” he said.
Inventory of available homes — measured by the average time it takes for a home to be sold if no
new homes are listed — also is tight, standing at a mere 2.8 months in June. Six months typically indicates a balance between buyers and sellers.
“We are definitely in a seller’s market,” Barrera said.
Nearly two-thirds of Texas Realtors who participated in a recent survey by the University of Houston’s Hobby School of Public Affairs said low mortgage rates have been a boon for business.
More than half of the 1,177 respondents said they have lost sales during the pandemic, though many are optimistic the dip is temporary.
But a lack of inventory and the pandemic’s effects on the economy are worrisome. More than threequarters of those surveyed said they expect foreclosures to increase as homeowners struggle to make payments.
“While most Realtors said they expect only relatively mild impacts to the housing market, we found they were
much more concerned about the overall economy,” said Pablo M. Pinto, director of the Center for Public Policy at the Hobby School. “At the same time, they are also concerned about the risks to family and loved ones that could rise with reopening the economy.”