Bright MLS, the regional multiple list service that stretches across six states and serves more than 95,000 subscribers, delivers a weekly market report for their footprint.
For the week ending Jan. 12, they state that high mortgage rates and winter weather sidelined buyers, but that supply is stronger than last year (however, affordability still a challenge).
Below are some of the headlines from this past week’s report.
New Contracts Hit Five Year Low: There were 3,987 new contracts in the Bright MLS service area for the week ending January 12, a 17.6% decline from the same week last year. Market activity is generally slow at the beginning of a new year, but new contracts are the lowest they have been during this week for the past five years.
Supply Strong Over Last Year: This week, there were 29,599 active listings in the Mid-Atlantic, an 11.5% increase over the second week of 2024. A pullback in new contract activity was the main driver of an uptick in active listings.
List Prices Edge Lower From Week Ago But Are Still At Challenging Heights: The median list price during the week ending January 12 was $399,990, a 1.2% decline from the first week of January but a 2.6% increase from 2024. With mortgage rates back up near 7%, many buyers may still feel pushed out of the market.
Bright’s Senior Economist Erica Plemmons said, “The silver lining though with fewer new contracts is that it’s allowed active listings to grow.”
Looking at our local statistics for Worcester County, we ended 2024 with listings up a little more than 10% over 2023.
Lauren Bunting is a Broker with Keller Williams Realty of Delmarva in Ocean City, Maryland.
