Things are definitely starting to change in Tucson. Unfortunately, I’m not talking about the weather. The real estate market is changing in some very noticeable ways. For the past few years we have been on a speeding roller coaster ride of rising prices, crazy low interest rates, and low inventory. Let’s go through the stats and see what’s changing (and what’s not).
The average price of a single family home in Tucson is $435,589. That’s down $8,231 from last month. Rising interest rates have definitely discouraged buyers from home shopping recently, but for now, housing prices remain historically high. A new stat I want to talk about is the housing affordability index. A score of 100 on this index means that buyer earning the median income in that area can exactly afford a median priced home in that area with a 20% down payment. Last August, we had a housing affordability index of 115. This last month, our score was 80. Tucson is just not as affordable as it once was, and wages are not keeping up with housing costs.
The average days on market is up by 3 days to 23 days. As a reminder, this is the average length of time a home sits on the market before going under contract. The average includes the multimillion dollar homes that will sit on the market slightly longer, as well as the uber ugly houses that just won’t sell. When you look at the median days on market, that number falls to just 11 days. This is still up from 7 days the month before. Fewer buyers are in the market to buy and so homes are sitting longer on the market.
Speaking of homes on the market, there are even fewer homes listed this month compared to last month. There were 2,629 homes for sale in August, 57 fewer than in July. With fewer homes and fewer buyers, the months of available inventory is unchanged at 1.9 months. This is the length of time it would take all the current buyers to buy all the current listings. A balanced market is considered as having about 4-6 months of inventory available. So, while this market is definitely shifting, we still have a ways to go.
What does this mean for you? As a homeowner, it means you most likely still have tons of equity. You can still make a great move up or downsize purchase if that’s in your plans. As a buyer, it means that while you can breathe a little and take a little more time making a decision, you won’t have a ton to choose from. Luckily, you can call your fave agent to get you the inside scoop on the best listings, even some that might not even be on the market yet!