CONCORD, NH – The housing market in New Hampshire continues to loosen up a little, a trend that’s been consistent for the last few months, but it hasn’t been enough to make a dent in the cost of buying a home.
All of the key sales indicators for sales and inventory for single-family homes are better than this time last year, according to the monthly market report from the New Hampshire Association of Realtors.
Most indicators favorable to buyers have improved, too, including days on the market and average percentage of list price paid. But the November median sales price, $525,000, is still beyond what’s affordable for most New Hampshire residents. Median means that half of the homes closed at a higher price, and half lower. The MSP is 5% lower than November 2024’s $500,000, and slightly lower than October’s $533,000.
The November median sales price in Hillsborough County, which includes Manchester and Nashua, was slightly higher than the state median, at $535,000. Manchester’s median for November was $465,000, while Nashua’s was $500,000.
When compared to last November, closed sales for single-family homes in the state are up 0.7%, pending sales are up 18.2%, new listings are up 4.5%, and overall homes for sale are up 18.8%.
As the year near it’s end, all of those numbers are also up when compared to this time last year – closed sales 3.6%, pending sales 6.75 and new listings 10%.
November traditionally is a slower month for home sales as winter closes in, and inventory reflects that, with a 2-months’ supply if homes continued to sell at the current pace with no new listings added, compared to 2.5 in October. November’s inventory was higher than 1.8 in November 2024. A 6-months’ supply is what’s needed for a healthy market.
The affordability index for November was 60, which means that the state’s median income is 60% of what’s needed to pay the monthly costs of a median-priced single-family home, including mortgage payment, insurance and property tax. That’s the same affordability index as November 2024, but higher than October’s 59, and the first time it’s hit 60 since then.
Buyers got a slight break as homes stayed on the market an average 33 days in November, up from 37 a year ago and the highest it’s been since April, when the average was 35. Buyers paid 99.1% of list price, down from 99.7% a year ago. Buyers paid an average of more than 100% for the first half of this year, but less beginning in July.
Condomium/townhouse market
Indicators were also positive in the much smaller condominium/townhouse market. Though closed sales were down 0.3%, pending sales were up 21.4%, new listings were up 19.3% and overall homes for sale were up 21.7%
The median sales price for a condo/townhouse was $423,000, up 2.7% from $412,000 a year ago and from $404,500 in October.
Month’s supply of inventory was 2.0, down from 2.3 last month, but up from 1.8 a year ago.
The affordability index was 74, up from 73 a year ago, but down from 78 in October.
Properties stayed on the market an average 36 days, the same as a year ago. Buyers paid 99.4% of list price, down from 100.4% a year ago.
Manchester and county picture
The $535,000 November single-family home median sales price in Hillsborough County was 5.9% higher than last November’s $505,000. It was also up from October’s $525,000. The number of homes closed on was down year-over-year – 255 this year compared to 262 a year ago.
The MSP for a condo/townhouse in Hillsborough County was $395,000 on 87 properties sold, up from $382,500 on 112 properties sold a year ago.
Manchester’s single-family home median sales price was well below the county’s, at $465,000 on 51 properties sold. Buyers have to act fast – properties stayed on the market an average 16 days and there is 0.9 months’ inventory available.
The county with the highest median sales price was Rockingham, on the Seacoast, at $625,500 on 207 sales, which was down from $655,000 on 222 sales a year ago.
The county with the lowest median sales price was Coos, the state’s northernmost county, at $254,950 on 34 homes sold. That was up from $230,000 on 37 homes sold a year ago.
National market
Nationally, the median sales price was $415,200, a 2.1% increase from November 2024, the 28th straight month that MSP has gone up, according to the National Association of Realtors.
Sales of single-family homes were up 1.2% from October, with about 4.10 million sold, as buyers took advantage of lower mortgage rates this fall, the NAR said. Year-over-year, sales were up 1.7%, with increases in the Northeast, Midwest, and South, and declining in the West.
Inventory was down 0.7% from October, but up 10.9% from November of last year. There is 4.4 months’ supply, up from 4.1 a year ago.