The housing market is finding its center again, showing signs of greater balance, according to the National Housing Trend Report.  The analysis finds year-over-year trends revealing strong gains in median list prices and declines in days on the market.

“Our September data on inventory counts, median list prices, and median time on market has shown another month of steady leveling, but the recovery certainly remains uneven in some pockets,” said Errol Samuelson.  “Some of the more industrial-based markets clearly continue to struggle, yet others are showing significant price gains over this time last year.  While we continue to see a trend of a healthy market balance, imminent economic factors could pose a significant threat to these improvements.

The report highlights some of the following progress on four main indicators for the housing market:

• List prices:  The median list price for homes in September dropped slightly but remained 6.4 percent higher than a year ago.  More than 20 percent of the 146 markets that was analyzed covers posted year-over-year gains in listing prices of 12 percent or more.
• Home sales:  Sales of single-family homes, condos, and townhouses fell 1.68 percent in September, after six consecutive months of gradual rises.
• Inventory levels:  Inventories were 2.04 percent less in September than year ago levels-signaling a greater balance between supply and demand.
• Days on market:  The median age of inventory increased from 92 days to 93 days in September.  However, it has fallen by 10.58 percent in the past year, which indicates that homes are selling more quickly.