July 9, 2012 (Shirley Allen)

Monthly sales of existing single-family homes in the state of New York rebounded strongly in May following a small loss in April while home prices recorded a modest increase but were still down from the previous year according to the latest housing data from the New York State Association of Realtors® (NYSAR).

An estimated total of 7,889 existing single-family homes were sold in the Empire State in May. That was 50.8 percent higher than the 5,233 homes sold in April and was 11.8 percent higher than the 7,056 homes sold in May 2011.

The median sales price for an existing home in New York increased to $208,000 in May from $205,000 in April. The median price was still 1.0 percent lower than the median price of $210,000 in May of last year.

Duncan R. MacKenzie, chief executive officer of NYSAR, stated, “The overall housing market in New York State continues to show signs of improvement. We are encouraged that the typically busy summer months will be strong as indicated by this May’s 13-percent jump in pending sales over last year.”

Of the 43 counties that provided data for the monthly report, thirty-two counties reported year-over year sales gains, up from 20 the previous month, while 19 of the counties posted an increase or had no change in home prices from a year ago.

Suffolk County recorded the most sales for the month with an estimated 824 home sales, up from 543 the previous month, while Nassau County followed with an estimated 806 home sales for the month, up from 540 in May.

The total number of homes for sale across the state fell in May with 100,045 homes actively available, down from 114,778 homes available last year.

The average number of days that a home spent on the market was 128, up slightly from 126 days in May 2011.

The state had an average 12.4 months supply of homes available for purchase, down from a 15.8 months supply a year earlier.

Tags: existing homes, condos, sales, median home prices, New York

Source:
NYSAR