CONCORD, NH – New listings of single-family residential property were down significantly in February compared to a year ago, and have been trending steadily downward overall since 2019, a key indicator that the state’s housing market will continue to remain sluggish.
New listings for existing single-family homes were down 11.3% from February 2024, according to the monthly market report from the New Hampshire Association of Realtors. Listings for condo/townhouses were down 6.2%. A total of 727 single-family homes were listed in February, compared to 820 a year ago. It marks the first month since March 2024 that year-over-year listings had decreased, but listings have also been on an overall downward trend for nearly a decade 2019.
Single-family home listings in 2024 were up slightly from 2023 – 14,548 compared to 13,650 – but still more than 30% less than in 2019. New listings were consistently above 20,000 in the years after the Great Recession housing bust, and the flooded market contributed, in part, to a slowdown in new construction, which has an impact on inventory. Continuing supply-chain challenges, which tariffs will likely make worse, and increasingly restrictive zoning also have an impact. Low inventory, as well an inconsistent economy and high interest rates all have an impact on whether home owners list their home.
Even though closed sales, pending sales and overall homes for sale were up from a year ago in February, new listings are a key indicator of how those trends will go in the future. The fewer homes listed, the fewer sales, as well as higher prices.
Inventory was up slightly, from 1.3 a year ago to 1.4, but the number is still the lowest since March 2024. The number means it would take about a month and a half to sell all the listed properties at the current pace if new listings weren’t added. Industry experts like to see six months’ worth of industry for a stable market.
The median sales price for a single-family home in New Hampshire in February was $510,000, up from $475,000 a year ago and $502,500 in January. Median means that half of the homes sold for higher than that price, and half lower.
Buyers got a little more of a break in February than they had for a while. Homes sold in February stayed on the market an average 44 days, up from 39 a year ago. The last time the average days on the market was that high was September 2020, when the average was 45. Buyers paid an average 99.1% of list price, down a little from 99.9% a year ago, but slightly higher than the 98.9% they paid in January.
Closed sales were up 5%, 612 compared to 583 a year ago; pending sales were up 2%, 721 compared to 707 a year ago; overall homes for sale were up 8.5%, at 1,409 compared to 1,299 a year ago.
The affordability index was 59, compared to 62 a year ago. That means that the area median income in New Hampshire is 59% of what is needed to pay the monthly costs for a median-priced house, including mortgage payment, property tax and insurance.
The much smaller condo/townhouse market was a little more sluggish in February than the single-family home market, with sales and pending sales down, and overall listings up.
There were 304 new listings compared to 320 in February 2024, a 6.2% drop. The median sales price was $380,000 – higher than February 2024’s $377,500, but the lowest it’s been since then, and much lower than January’s $426,000. The affordability index was 79, up from 78 a year ago and the highest it’s been in the condo/townhouse market since April 2023, when it was 86. It dropped to 77 the following month.
Inventory was 1.8 months’ supply, up from 1.5 a year ago, with no change from January.
There were 220 closed sales, a 4.3% drop from February 2024’s 230; 262 pending sales, down 16.3% from 313 a year ago; overall 602 condo/townhouses for sale, up 22.9% from 490 a year ago.
Buyers in February paid an average of 100.2% of list price, down from 101.4% a year ago, but slightly up from the 99.9% they paid in January. Condo/townhouse properties that were sold in February stayed on the market for an average 40 days, compared to 30 a year ago. The last time the average days on market for condo/townhouse properties was that high was July 2020, when it was 42.
Nationally, the median sales price for a single-family home was $396,900, 4.8% increase over February 2024, according to the National Association of Realtors. Inventory was 3.5 months’ supply, with 1.18 units for sale, up 16.8% from the previous year. Sales were up 2% from February 2024, but down 4.9% from January.
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