Graphic: Five ways the U.S. housing market stood apart in 2021

By Dan Burns

(Reuters) – The marketplace for current U.S. houses softened unexpectedly in December, however 2021 nonetheless wrapped up with the strongest annual gross sales in 15 years, information from the Nationwide Affiliation of Realtors out Thursday confirmed.

Listed here are 5 standout details from the 2021 housing market:

(Graphic: Current house gross sales hit 15-year excessive in 2021, https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-ECONOMY/HOUSING/akvezewwbpr/chart.png)

HIGHEST ANNUAL SALES SINCE 2006

Gross sales for the yr topped 6 million houses for the primary time since 2006 and have been up 8.3% from 2020’s complete, the most important improve since 2013.

(Graphic: Report-low variety of houses on the market, https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-ECONOMY/HOUSING/movanwaabpa/chart.png)

FEWER HOMES FOR SALE

The rise in gross sales got here whilst there have been far fewer houses in the marketplace. The yr ended with simply 920,000 houses listed on the market, the primary time that determine has fallen beneath the 1 million mark since NAR started monitoring it in 1982.

The variety of houses in the marketplace every month has been decrease than the identical month a yr earlier for 30 straight months.

(Graphic: Residence costs noticed double-digit development by means of 2021, https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-ECONOMY/HOUSING/klpykqywzpg/chart.png)

DOUBLE-DIGIT PRICE GAINS

The brief provide coupled with sizzling demand because the coronavirus pandemic reshapes preferences for the place to dwell drove costs to document highs in 2021. On a year-over-year foundation, gross sales costs have notched double-digit will increase for 19 months in a row.

(Graphic: A pandemic house value shift, https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-ECONOMY/HOUSING/klpykqyrzpg/chart.png)

PANDEMIC PRICING MIX SHIFT

With costs rising quick, the combo of houses in the marketplace by value vary has shifted at breakneck pace through the pandemic. The share of gross sales in every of the highest three value brackets — $500,000 to $750,000; $750,000 to $1 million; and $1 million and up — has roughly doubled since earlier than the pandemic. The share of gross sales of houses within the $100,000 to $250,000 vary, lengthy the most important value bracket, declined at an unprecedented fee for the reason that onset of the pandemic and now account for fewer than 1 / 4 of all gross sales.

(Graphic: Robust housing marketplace for first-time patrons, https://graphics.reuters.com/USA-ECONOMY/HOUSING/znpnelaoovl/chart.png)

TOUGH MARKET FOR FIRST-TIME BUYERS

Surging costs make it all of the more durable for first-time patrons to compete for houses, particularly with provide so restricted. First-time patrons accounted for lower than 30% of gross sales within the final half of 2021, the bottom in additional than half a decade.

(Reporting by Dan Burns; enhancing by Jonathan Oatis)