R.I. housing market remains strong in July
Warwick, RI – August 20, 2019 – Single-family home sales rose ten percent from July 2018 to July 2019 while the median price of those sales increased 6.5 percent to $297,500, according to sales data released today by the Rhode Island Association of Realtors and its subsidiary, State-Wide Multiple Listing Service.
While sales and prices continue to climb, the market remains constricted by low inventory. The number of homes for sale last month fell 10.6 percent from the prior year leaving a 4.1-month supply of homes for sale, nearly two months less than what most industry experts consider a balanced market.
In the condominium market, sales decreased marginally while prices continued to rise. The median price of a condo last month reached $240,000, the highest monthly median sales price in that sector in the past eight years.
New Federal Housing Administration loan policies for condos have been finalized by the Department of Housing and Urban Development and will go into effect in mid-October. The new guidance extends certifications from two to three years, allows for single-unit mortgage approvals, provides more flexibility with owner/occupancy ratios, and increases the allowable number of FHA loans in a single project.
“Condos are a great alternative for first-time homeowners but until now, those buyers were hampered by cumbersome lending requirements. The new rules should help spark increased sales activity in that market,” said Dean deTonnancourt, President of the Rhode Island Association of Realtors.
Multifamily home sales rose 18.7 percent in July from the prior year while the median sales price increased eight percent to $270,000. Multifamily home sales began to slow at the end of last year, but prices have risen steadily since December of 2014.
Months Supply: Click here for interactive display
About the Rhode Island Association of REALTORS®
The Rhode Island Association of REALTORS®, one of the largest trade organizations in Rhode Island with more than 5,000 members in nearly 1,000 offices, has been serving Rhode Islanders since 1948. Advocating for Rhode Island's property owners, the Rhode Island Association of REALTORS® provides a facility for professional development, research and exchange of information among its members and to the public and government for the purpose of preserving the free enterprise system and the right to own real property. Last year, RI Realtors transacted $6.9 billion in residential real estate sales and $7.1 billion in total sales and rentals including commercial transactions.
The Association is one of more than 1,500 boards and associations that comprise the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR). The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America's largest trade association, representing over 1.5 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries and who subscribe to a strict Code of Ethics.
REALTOR® is a federally registered collective membership mark which identifies a real estate professional who is member of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.