March Home Sales Maintain Red-Hot Pace

Year-to-date new open escrows up 24 percent versus 2020.

Last year at this time, the Greater Sacramento region was on yet another red-hot pace with home sales in the first quarter and well on the path to produce extraordinary figures. Then shelter-in-place orders began to appear around March 19. By month’s end, health and safety correctly became the top priority while our economy and local housing market was guided into the slow zone under a caution flag. Since the market rebound in the third quarter of last year, home sales have remained on a tear.

Specifically, 5,453 homes closed escrow in the first quarter, which was 7 percent higher than 2020. New open escrows year to date at April 14 are 24 percent higher than last year’s numbers. Despite the voracious buyer demand, year-to-date new listings entering the market are still somewhat subdued, tracking 8 percent lower when compared to last year. These metrics have left a paltry 15 days of inventory available for sale on the open market.

The average sales price for homes closed in the first quarter rested at $570,000. This metric was up more than 20 percent year over year and reflected the highest number on record. Sellers received approximately 101 percent of original list price and were on the market an average of only 21 days. These numbers are extreme for greater Sacramento and are a result of the volume of buyers ready, willing and able to compete in a persistent climate of multiple offers.

Second-quarter sales are already off to a strong start as new open escrows thus far for the month of April are up approximately 3 percent compared to a very busy mid-March. New listings, however, are currently tracking 20 percent lighter for the month and consequently, standing inventory remains threatened at 60 percent lower than last year at this time. That is not the entire story however. Many sellers have delayed action until they find a bridge solution to secure their next home prior to listing their property for sale. Others are waiting until more good news is confirmed around the decline of the pandemic.

“Many experts, including Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist for the National Association of Realtors, have stated their expectations that home sales will remain very strong this year with typical seasonality returning near the holidays,” says Pat Shea, president of Lyon Real Estate.

Shea adds, “Continued migration to greater Sacramento, higher and more permanent remote working opportunities, very low mortgage interest rates and most importantly, a fabulous quality of life will keep our region a prime home buying destination for the foreseeable future.”

This market information was provided by Trendgraphix Inc., a Sacramento-based reporting company and presented by Lyon Real Estate.

About TrendGraphix, Inc.

TrendGraphix, Inc. is a real estate reporting company based in Sacramento that uses local Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data to provide highly-visual market statistical graphs to real estate brokers, agents, and MLS/Realtor associations across the country. TrendGraphix’s programs are currently used by tens of thousands of agents in more than 250 brokerages in 48 states. For more information about TrendGraphix, visit www.trendgraphix.com.