Sales, prices of homes here rise yet again

Closings increase 2% over last November

Buoyed by low unemployment and mortgage rates, home sales and prices in San Antonio inched up in November.

Sales rose 2 percent year-overyear as buyers closed on 2,448 homes, the fifth straight month of increases, the San Antonio Board of Realtors reported.

The median price also rose 2 percent, to $230,600 — marking more than three years of upticks. May 2016 was the last time there was not a year-over-year increase.

Sales also are on track to break records: As of last month, 31,561 homes had been sold this year, 6 percent more than the same time last year, the organization said.

Most of those houses were entry-level or midrange homes: More than 58 percent were priced between $200,000 and $500,000 and nearly 36 percent cost under $200,000. Just over 5 percent were priced at more than $500,000.

Local inventory of available homes — measured by the average time it takes for a home to be sold if no new homes are listed — was 3.6 months, reflecting a sellers’ market.

An inventory of six months generally indicates a balance between buyers and sellers. The supply of homes in San Antonio remains tight, particularly the pool of houses priced at less than $250,000.

“San Antonio and the surrounding area remain competitive for home buyers and sellers as we move into the new year,” said Grant Lopez, SABOR’s chairman of the board.

There were more than 10,000 active listings on the market last month and over 3,000 new listings were added, he noted.

Across Texas, sales rose 3.7 percent, and the median price ticked up 3.9 percent to $240,000.