March Monthly Market Comparison(HAR Report):
With frenzied buying at the high end and shrinking inventory in the mid-to-low end, the Houston real estate market managed to achieve its tenth straight month of positive sales in March, with some of the data distorted because it compares to March of 2020 when very little business took place as a result of COVID-19 lockdowns.
The monthly sales readings were mostly positive. Single-family home sales, total property sales and total dollar volume all rose compared to March 2020. Pending sales shot up 61.1 percent. However, total active listings – or the total number of available properties – fell 43.2 percent as fewer new listings came onto the market.
A 5.8 percent year-over-year decline in new listings combined with another strong month of sales drove single-family homes inventory down to a 1.4-months supply compared to 3.4 months a year earlier. That is the lowest inventory level of all time. Housing inventory nationally stands at a 2.0-months supply, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).