New Listings: 15,478
vs. 2nd half 2019: +2.15%
vs. 1st half 2019: -12.82%
Avg. Sale Price: $234,995
vs. 2nd half 2019: +2.64%
vs. 1st half 2019: +4.76%
Avg. Days On Market: 31.73
vs. 2nd half 2019: +9.64%
vs. 1st half 2019: -11.71%
Absorption Rate: 27.17%
vs. market equilibrium: +10.50%
(based on data from Cincinnati MLS)
In the first half of 2020, New Listings rebounded vs. the second half of 2019, but are still down significantly vs. the first half of 2019. This suggests that the market is recovering from COVID-19, but it still has quite a bit of catching up to do. It’s no surprise that the Absorption Rate is up as a result. Avg. Sale Price is up moderately, while Avg. Days On Market is up vs. the second half of 2019 but down vs. the first half of 2019. Other than New Listings and Avg. Days on Market being up vs. the 2nd half of 2019, all other figures illustrate a sellers’ market with low inventory and strong demand.
The absorption rate is a lesser known figure to the general public, but it may be the most important one. It factors in active & pending listings (current inventory), along with the average number of listings sold per month over the past 6 months. The resulting figure is the percentage of current inventory sold each month. Our current absorption rate of 27.17% can also be expressed as a 3.68 months’ supply of homes. This rate is 10.50% higher than the market equilibrium rate of 16.67%, or a 6 months’ supply of homes. When the absorption rate is higher than 16.67%, the market conditions favor sellers. When it’s lower than 16.67%, buyers have the upper hand.