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The Greater Lehigh Valley REALTORS® (GLVR) reported September data showed that there are no signs of the usual seasonal slowing of the housing market, as strong buyer activity continues into the fall.

GLVR Members: Click HERE to view the full Market Update report for September 2020.

“The striking market turnaround since the early days of the coronavirus pandemic is proving housing’s resilience in an unusual and volatile year,” said GLVR CEO Justin Porembo. “With stronger buyer activity in the market this year and the continued constrained supply of homes for sale, fast sales and multiple offers are likely to remain a common occurrence and will keep the housing market hot even when the weather is cooling.”
 
With data now available for the month of September, Northampton and Lehigh counties saw increases almost across the board, including:

  • New Listings increased 12.8 percent to 1,049.
  • Closed Sales increased 23.2 percent to 897.
  • Pending Sales jumped 28.7 percent to 915.
  • The Median Sales Price increased 14.8 percent to $236,000.
  • The Percentage of List Price Received increased 1.6 percent to 99.9 percent.

Inventory, of course, remains low, shrinking 51.1 percent to 917 units, leading to a Months Supply of Inventory that was down 46.2 percent to 1.4 months. This low inventory means Days on Market remained fast, decreasing 36.4 percent to just 21 days.

“The mix of surging buyer demand and low inventory has put our industry in uncharted territory, and the continued rise in home prices is threatening to ‘chock off’ first-time buyers,” said GLVR President Jack Gross. “That said, mortgage rates remain at record lows and the unemployment rate is slowly rebounding from the early days of COVID-19. We are seeing buyers out in full force this fall, showing amazing spirit and perseverance in working toward their dreams of homeownership.”

In Carbon County, which also continues to show a healthy amount of housing-related activity, the Median Sales Price increased to $175,000. Closed Sales were up to 91. Pending Sales increased to 112. For New Listings, there were also 112. Inventory dropped to 142 units, leading to a Months Supply of Inventory of 1.9 months.

Monthly Reminder: Real Estate is Safe

Porembo and Gross continue to emphasize that real estate is safe in the age of COVID-19. All area REALTORS® have access to suggested best practices that outline how to keep everyone involved in a real estate transaction safe. Should any consumer – whether they be a home buyer or seller – be interested in learning how they and their REALTOR® can work together to create a safe environment for a real estate transaction, additional information is available at parealtors.org/coronavirus/best-practices.