Summit County real estate sales saw a sharp decline in January from both versus the prior month and versus January of 2022. January transactions were down 47.1 percent from December while the dollar volume of sales for the period declined 57.9 percent. Year over year the declines were of similar magnitude. The number of transactions fell by 48.4 percent and dollar volume was of 57. percent.
No doubt higher interest rates are having their impact on sales. With higher rates, required payments rise taking new home ownership out of the reach of many. No doubt recent short term rental restrictions have had an impact as well. Finally, as the COVID restrictions have eased potential buyers are less inclined to seek that ideal spot to work remotely.
Although somewhat early in the year to draw any definitive conclusions, average selling prices (ASPs) in January did soften. The ASP for a single family home during the month was $2.86 million, down about 9.4 percent from the full year 2022 figure. Multi family ASPs also eased lower dropping 7.1 percent to $835,000.
The sales mix in the month did not show any particular preference for high end or low end properties. Properties about $2.5 million were slightly ahead of their 2022 share. However, the $400k-$600k and $800k-$900k ranges were also above the 2022 levels. Meanwhile the $1 million to $2 million price points came in a little light.
Inventories up sharply year over year
February is usually the month we start to see the seasonal increase in inventory which accelerates into the late spring. The end of February did see a small gain overall, 1.3 percent, which was driven by a 4.3 percent gain in multi family properties while single family listing were down 3.1 percent. Year over year, listing were up dramatically. Single family homes for sale rose 82.4 percent and multi family were up 163.6 percent. Even with those big gains, the for sale inventory is still about half of historical levels at this time of year.