The residential real estate market in the New York Metropolitan Area, defined by the US Census Bureau as 23 counties across New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, is performing better than the rest of the country. This is according to recent research data from Homes.com. In August, sales in this region decreased by only 2.8 percent compared to the same month last year. Nationally, home sales fell by 4.3 percent year-on-year in August.
Based on the annual change in sales activity, the New York Metropolitan Area housing market ranks sixth among the top 40 national markets, as shown by the Homes.com analysis. At the same time, sellers in the New York Metro continued to list properties, with new listings rising by 10.3 percent year-on-year to 5,694 units.
Inventory and Price Development
Despite the increase in new listings, the overall inventory in the region saw a decrease of 3.1 percent. This contrasts with the national trend, which recorded an increase of 5.4 percent. With 22,336 homes for sale, the inventory in the New York Metropolitan Area remains 30.7 percent below pre-pandemic levels.
Victor Rodriguez, Senior Director for Market Analytics at Homes.com, noted in the report that "a surge of fresh listings could not stop the inventory from shrinking." He added that "price growth cooled compared to the previous year, but competition for properties remained strong."
Property prices also show an upward trend, though not at an alarming pace. The median sale price for homes in the New York Metropolitan Area counties increased by 3.3 percent in the past year up to August, reaching 785,000 $. This increase surpassed the national comparable value of 2.1 percent.
Mortgage Rate Outlook
The development of mortgage rates will become a crucial factor towards the end of the year. Rodriguez explained that "the average weekly mortgage rate jumped to 6.95 percent in September, the highest level since January 2025." He forecasts that "some buyers could feel the pressure of higher borrowing costs in the coming months."
