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Sales of existing homes continued to slump in central Indiana in January, falling 31.3% from the same month of 2022, according to the latest monthly data from the MIBOR Realtor Association.
Closed sales in the 16-county area sank from 2,210 in January 2022 to 1,519 in January 2023.
Despite the decline, median prices for homes sold in the area rose 11% on a year-over-year basis, from $245,000 to $272,000.
Sales have now fallen on a year-over-year basis for the past 12 months and have seen double-digit percentage decreases for seven straight months.
Sales fell 37.3% from December to January.
In one sign of possible market improvement, buyers are seeing more choices. The active inventory of homes was up 92.5%, from 1,760 in January 2022 to 3,388 in January 2023. New listings in January were up 20.2% from the previous month, to 2,037.
However, homes are spending much more time on the market than a year ago, from 29 in January 2022 to 59 in January 2023. And sellers are receiving a lower percentage of their asking price, from 99.4% a year ago to 96.8% last month.
Marion County
In Marion County—the most active market in central Indiana—closed sales in January fell 39.2% from the previous year, to 537.
The median sales price in the county rose 0.9% from a year ago, to $217,000.
Other area counties
In Hamilton County, sales dropped 12.9% in January on a year-over-year basis, to 276. The median sales price in the county rose 13.5%, to $430,000.
In Hendricks County, sales fell 18.1%, to 140, and the median sales price increased 5.2%, to $323,750.
In Johnson County, sales decreased 36.1%, to 106, and the median sales price rose 6.5%, to $287,450.
Sales fell 33.8% in Madison County, to 90. The median sales price dipped 0.3%, to $149,500.
Hancock County sales dropped 40.9% in 2022, to 68. The median price for a home jumped 2.1%, to $300,598.
Sales in Boone County dropped 31.6%, to 52, while the median price of a home rose 18.3%, to $361,250.
Morgan County sales decreased 19.7%, to 53, and the median sales price climbed 8.3%, to $260,000
Shelby County saw an 48.9% drop in closed sales, to 23. The median price rose 9.3%, to $208,750.
Statewide numbers
The Indiana Association of Realtors reported an 25.9% drop in sales of existing homes statewide, from 5,647 in January 2022 to 4,186 in January 2023. The median sales price rose 3.4%, to $215,000.
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JUST AN OLD MAN TALKING.
Id like to see the results broken down a bit more. Sounds like speculators and first time buyers could be cooling off. Middle to upper income buyers are stablizing the median price market while buyers who were spoiled by low interest rates are also shying away.
Z generation may be determining apartment life and vacations is a better culture. I wonder how this trend may affect birth rate.
JUST AN OLD MAN TALKING.
Id like to see the statistics broken down a bit more. Sounds like speculators and first time buyers could be cooling off. Middle to upper income buyers are keeping the median price market stable. Buyers, spoiled by low interest rates are also shying away.
Z generation may be determining apartment life and vacations is a better culture than mowing lawn. I wonder if this trend may affect birth rate.
“Buyers, spoiled by low interest rates are also shying away.” – So many people became unqualified in a matter of months. Great time to buy if you stomach the higher rates and have $$$. Probably won’t last long though. I suspect a frenzy if/when the Fed pivot occurs, rates dip, or lenders loosen requirements.
Unfortunately, rates will continue to increase thru all of 2023. The earliest you will see any change downward will be 2024 and more likely 2025 (dependent on multiple factors). The mortgage bankers see rates staying in the current bandwidth for years to come. There will be flexible options to refinance at lower rates maybe once at little to no cost by your mortgage company to incentivize buyers to buy during higher rates (maybe selectively).