According to the National Association of Realtors‘ (NAR) most recent quarterly report, home prices increased in about 90% of metro markets (196 out of 226, or 87%) during Q3 of 2024. Compared to 13% in Q2, just 7% of the 226 metro regions under study saw double-digit price increases within the same time frame. “Home prices remain on solid ground as reflected by the vast number of markets experiencing gains,” said Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist of NAR. “A typical homeowner accumulated $147,000 in housing wealth in the last five years. Even with the rapid price appreciation over the last few years, the likelihood of a market crash is minimal. Distressed property sales and the number of people defaulting on mortgage payments are both at historic lows.”

The typical single-family existing-home price nationwide increased 3.1% to $418,700 from a year ago. The national median price rose 4.9% year-over-year in the previous quarter. With a 0.8% year-over-year price increase, the South had the highest percentage of single-family existing-home sales (45.1%) among the major U.S. regions in Q3. Additionally, prices rose 1.8% in the West, 4.3% in the Midwest, and 7.8% in the Northeast. Gains of at least 10.6% were recorded in the top 10 metro areas with the biggest year-over-year median price increases, which can be impacted by the kinds of properties sold during the quarter.

Source: NAR