It’s a hat trick for single-family homes in New Hampshire as the median price of a house recorded a record high price in May — $525,000 — for the third month in a row.
The May all-time high follows the $515,000 reported in April as a record and the $495,950 recorded in March, also a record.
“With just 1,579 single-family homes for sale today and a median price of $525,000, it’s easy to see that many homebuyers will not be able to find a home they can afford,” said Joanie McIntire, president of the New Hampshire Association of Realtors (NHAR).
NHAR’s May report on the state of the residential real estate industry in New Hampshire shows that the newest record-setting median price of $525,000 for a single-family home is a 12.9% jump over May 2023.
Since 2022, according to NHAR data, the price of a home has increased 14.1% when it was $460,000.
“I spoke with a fellow Realtor this morning who said ‘stunning’ was the only word he could think of to describe the market we are in,” said McIntire, an associate broker at Coldwell Banker J. Hampe Associates in Concord.
The newest data shows homes on the market are not only expensive by comparison but they are, as a result, less affordable for the average homebuyer, and they are hard to find.
“When they do find a listing in their price range, they are competing with many other buyers who will likely offer over asking price,” said McIntire.
The stats bear her out. May’s affordability index was 56, which tied a record low from April. The index is based on 100 in that the average homeowner has exactly enough money to afford the costs associated with buying a house. The lower the index, the less affordable the real estate is to buy.
An affordability index of 56 shows that a median household income is only 56% of what is needed to qualify for the median-priced home of $525,000.
And, even if they can afford the home, they are hard to find, per the NHAR data for May.
The months supply stands at 2.0. Supply is measured by estimating how long it would take to sell all homes on the market at the current sales pace, assuming no new homes are added. A healthy months supply is six months. And, when a house comes on the market, it doesn’t stay there very long, only 27 days, according to the May stats.
“Our last balanced market was in 2015,” said McIntire. “May of 2015 saw approximately 9,800 homes for sale with a median selling price of $245,000.”
The May 2024 inventory of homes for sale was 1,949, an improvement over previous months but far below what McIntire considers a balanced market.
The median price for a residential condominium is also at record levels in the state — now $449,900.
Condos, too, have an affordability and supply problem. The affordability index stands at 65, and the months supply is 1.8.
Among the state’s 10 counties, Rockingham remains the most expensive with a median-priced home selling for $650,000, up 11.6% from last May. Here are the prices for the rest of the counties: Belknap, $525,000; Carroll, $500,000; Cheshire, $375,000; Coos, $289,000; Grafton, $439,250; Hillsborough, $587,500; Merrimack, $467,750; Stafford, $501,000; and Sullivan, $397,500.
Coos County had one condo sale for $639,000, putting it at the top for May among the other counties, as follows: Belknap, $365,000; Carroll, $424,500; Cheshire, $257,500; Grafton, $495,000; Hillsborough, $388,000; Merrimack, $285,000; Rockingham, $568,258 Stafford, $499,950; and Sullivan, $430,000.
As the most expensive region for real estate, the Seacoast saw the median price of a single-family rise 15.9% in May to $800,000.
The Seacoast Board of Realtors takes its data from the following sample communities: The 13 sample Seacoast towns are Exeter, Greenland, Hampton, Hampton Falls, New Castle, Newfields, Newington, North Hampton, Newmarket, Portsmouth, Rye, Seabrook and Stratham.
Of note from the board was the May sale in Rye of a 10,176-square-foot, 9-bedroom, ocean-view residence for $18.5 million. This is the second biggest sale in the state in the modern era. The biggest, also in Rye, was for $25 million in 2022.
The median price of a condominium on the Seacoast in May was $623,000.
The only way out of the price and affordability crisis, as McIntire has been saying for several months, is creating more supply.
“Increased inventory is the best path to a more balanced market. A good portion of the needed inventory needs to be affordable for first-time and middle-income buyers,” she said. “New Hampshire Realtors continue to believe that relaxing the very restrictive zoning around the state is an important piece of helping our residents achieve the American dream of homeownership. Homeownership is essential to building strong communities, supporting a strong economy and building generational wealth.”
