Sign In
Upcoming Event
Free Newsletter
Demand doesn’t diminish despite soaring home prices in Rochester
Homes on average were selling within 13 days of listing in May, according to Realtor.com's latest housing report. (Photo by Kevin Oklobzija)
Homes on average were selling within 13 days of listing in May, according to Realtor.com's latest housing report. (Photo by Kevin Oklobzija)
Demand doesn’t diminish despite soaring home prices in Rochester
Home prices in the Rochester metropolitan area skyrocketed by nearly 20 percent in May, yet the spike did little to discourage buyers.
Despite a median listing price of $265,000, the median time on the market was just 13 days. That was up three days compared to May of 2022 but still the lowest in the nation, according to Realtor.com’s May Housing Report.
In May of 2022, the median listing price in Greater Rochester was $225,000, according to Realtor.com. The 19.2 percent year-over-year rise was the second-largest in the country behind only Cincinnati (19.9). Of the top 50 markets in the nation, 13 saw a double-digit rise in median listing price.
The primary reason that houses continued to sell quickly: basic supply and demand. Inventory remains at historic lows. New listings in the Rochester metro area plunged 24.3 and active listings were down 13 percent in the year-over-year comparison by Realtor.com.
Still, the homes that are listed are selling.
“We do hear, ‘Oh, I’m going to wait,’ but the price of homes is not going to go down, so waiting is not the best option,” said Mike O’Connor, president of the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors.
Inventory remains low because those looking to sell can’t find what they want, so it’s one big cycle, O’Connor said.
“People could sell, but where would they go?” he said. “Seniors could downsize, but they’d probably end up playing more and not putting away what they’d like.”
New home construction also isn’t able to keep up with demand, and a significant percentage of potential homebuyers are being priced out of the new market.
“The price of new is out of reach for your standard buyer,” O’Connor said.
While mortgage rates have essentially doubled in the past 18 months, to around 6.5 percent, that hasn’t chased buyers to the sideline.
“It’s not impacting sales but affordability,” O’Connor said. “If a buyer qualified for $250,000 last year, they might only qualify for $200,000 now.”
[email protected]/(585) 653-4020
r
