New York home sales rise almost 5 percent in May, CNY sales also up

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York realtors sold more than 10,700 previously-owned homes in May, up 4.6 percent from the 10,235 homes they sold in the year-ago period.

That’s according to a housing-market report released that the New York State Association of Realtors released last week.

Spring buyer activity “remained strong” as New Yorkers closed on a record number of homes in May, Duncan MacKenzie, CEO of NYSAR, said in the organization’s news release.

“This is a welcome reversal after the slight dip in April sales as some buyers struggled to find their next home,” MacKenzie added.

Newly listed homes rose 3.2-percent during May, compared to a year ago. That was New York’s first month-over-month increase in new listings since March 2016.

“Sales in the months ahead will undoubtedly be aided by this influx of new listings. However, we are still closely watching the overall number of homes for sale, which remains well below a year ago. Continued growth in homes listed for sale will play a key role in the overall health of the summer market,” MacKenzie explained.

With the increase in home sales, prices also spiked in May, with the statewide median sales price jumping 7.1 percent compared to a year prior.

Central New York data

Realtors in Broome County sold 137 existing homes in May, up nearly 4 percent from 132 a year ago, according to the NYSAR report. The median sales price rose nearly 21 percent to nearly $110,000 from $91,000 a year ago.

In Jefferson County, realtors closed on 109 homes in May, up almost 40 percent from 78 homes a year ago, and the median sales price increased more than 22 percent to $142,000 from nearly $116,000 in May 2016, according to the NYSAR data.

NYSAR also reports that realtors sold 173 homes in Oneida County last month, up more than 16 percent compared to the 149 sold during May 2016. The median sales price fell more than 2 percent to $112,000 from nearly $115,000 a year ago.

Realtors in Onondaga County sold 474 previously owned homes in May, a sales increase of more than 8 percent compared to the May 2016 total of 438. The median sales price rose 4.6 percent to nearly $136,000 from $130,000 a year ago, according to the NYSAR report.

All home-sales data is compiled from multiple-listing services in New York state and it includes townhomes and condominiums in addition to existing single-family homes, according to NYSAR.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com