Homes in the Boise area are staying on the market longer. But prices are remaining steady.
The median price of a single-family home in Ada County in February was $492,115, according to the Intermountain Multiple Listing Service. That’s down 10.5% from February 2022, when the median price was $549,900.
Despite the year-over-year fall, prices increased slightly — about $5,000 — from January’s median sales price. The increase may be attributable to a higher-than-average share of new construction sales, which typically sell for more than existing homes.
More than 40% of all home sales that closed in February were new homes, rather than resold ones.
“Prices are still adjusting to mortgage rates and buyer demand, but this month-over-month uptick in prices may indicate that we’re reaching a new normal with prices,” Boise Regional Realtors President Debbi Myers said in a news release. “Mortgage rates and supply versus demand will be the ultimate determining factor on where prices go, but we’ll keep watching to see if prices continue to level out.”
Although closings were 7.3% lower than the same time last year, more Ada County homes sold in February than in the previous month. In January, 454 single-family homes were sold. That number ticked up to 613 in February.
Mike Pennington, of John L. Scott Real Estate in Boise, said in an email on the latest monthly listing-service report that he expects resale home prices to flatten out with the current inventory.
“Many would be buyers who own their current homes, are reluctant to sell and buy given current interest rates,” Pennington said. “It is also a greater challenge as homes are not selling in a week as they did in 2020. Many families are taking a wait and see attitude. I do see a slow steady recovery in both the new and resale markets.”
The length of time homes spend on the market after being listed has also continued to slow down.
Single-family homes in Ada County spent an average of 78 days on the market before going under contract in February. That’s up 143.8% from February 2022, when they spent an average of 32 days on the market.
The last time that metric was higher than 78 days was in February 2012, according to a news release from Boise Regional Realtors.
A report on home sellers’ gains in the fourth quarter of 2022 from ATTOM, a housing and property data provider, showed that profit margins on typical home sales from 2021 to 2022 improved in 90% of the country’s metro areas, but not in Boise. Boise, which saw profit margins drop from 75.9% to 68.9%, was among the metros with the biggest decrease in investment returns.
Pennington said most home builders have already taken steps to slash retail prices and, therefore, profits. He said he doesn’t see prices dropping much further.
“Prices will slowly continue to creep upwards,” Pennington said. “Buyers who believe that if they wait to purchase a new home, prices will continue to drop dramatically. This simply will not be the case. If we are not already at the bottom, we are very close.”
Other details from the latest monthly listing-service report for Ada County:
New-construction homes sold for a median price of $529,990. Existing homes sold for $472,000.
Highest median prices: Northeast Boise, $900,000; North Boise, $888,000; Eagles, $850,000.
Lowest median prices: Boise Bench, $390,000; Garden City, $395,555; Kuna, $405,436.
In Canyon County, the median price of a single-family home in February was $389,945, according to the Intermountain Multiple Listing Service. That’s down 10.3% from February 2022, when the median price was $434,900, and down $5,500 from January.
More details from the latest report for Canyon County:
Single family homes spent an average of 86 days on the market, compared with 36 days in February 2022.
Highest median prices: West of Lake Lowell, $754,950; Middleton, $597,520; Parmas, $475,000.
Lowest median prices: Southwest Caldwell, $342,500; Wilder, $350,000; Northwest Caldwell, $350,500.
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