This is your monthly real estate market update for Anne Arundel County Maryland with James Bowerman and the Real Creative Group of Compass.
Anne Arundel County, MD Housing Inventory
Let’s take a quick dive into a few of the metrics for Anne Arundel Counties housing inventory.
Coming Soon: There are 121 homes coming soon to the market, which is 34 less than last month.
Active Listings: There are only 520 properties active for sale. This is 108 (up 20%) more homes compared to last month, but a 12% decrease compared to this time last year.
Under Contract: There are 1,364 homes under contract and no longer available to tour or purchase. This is 69 more properties compared to last month, but a 20% decrease compared to this time last year.
Homes Sold: There were 845 homes sold during the month of February. This is 240 more home sales compared to February, but a 7% decrease compared to this time last year.
Anne Arundel County, MD Average Time on Market
The average days on market went down to 16 days, which is a decrease of 8 days, meaning homes sold more than a week faster compared to this time last month.
Anne Arundel County, MD Average Home Prices
The average home sale price in Anne Arundel County increased 5% to $515,559 last month, which is also a 6% increase compared to prices this time last year.
Closing Thoughts on the Real Estate Market in Maryland
As we can see, inventory is starting to rise, but relative to past years it’s still very, very low. It is because the demand for housing is so high, that homes are selling so quickly, and property values are going through the roof.
So what is it going to take to decrease the demand and when can we expect things to change? As I’ve said before, this is not like 2008, and we aren’t heading towards a crash. But, we could be nearing the point where affordability begins pushing buyers out of the market.
Interest rates have climbed significantly in the past couple of months. In February of this year, the average interest rate was 3.76% according to Freddie Mac. Rates today are nearing 5%!
Homebuyers who began their search in February for a $500,000 home with 5% down would be paying about $2,200 per month, plus taxes and insurance. That buyer today, with a 5% interest loan is going to be paying $350 more per month.
This creates a challenge because as affordability goes down, home prices continue to rise. If you’re currently looking to buy a home, it’s time you checked in with your lender to see if you’re still qualified for that $500,000 home.
It will be interesting to see how high and quickly these rates go up, and at what point buyers begin to say “enough is enough,” and take a seat on the bench.