Central Ohio Housing Report – March 2021

Buyers are moving quickly on any new listings that come on the market. In March, just listed homes jumped 51% over February which resulted in a 36% increase of homes in contract as well!

If you’re considering a purchase or a sale, we can help you navigate this hectic, multiple offer market!  

New listings jump fifty percent in March

After two consecutive months of new listing declines, homes added to the market in March jumped 51.1 percent from the previous month. The 3,094 homes listed last month showed a marked improvement from the 2,047 new listings in February and 2,187 in January.

Buyers moved quickly on the added inventory putting 3,289 homes in contract, up 36.2 percent from February and 8.2 percent from last year.

This left the number of homes available for sale at the end of March at 1,639, down 51.9 percent from March of 2020, according to the Columbus REALTORS® Multiple Listing Service

As a result, months supply remains at 0.6 which means that, if no more homes were listed for sale, it would take just a couple weeks to sell the available inventory at the current sales pace.

“Inventory levels remain at record lows due to the significant increase in demand for homes in central Ohio that we’ve experienced for the last ten years,” said Michael Jones, 2021 Columbus REALTORS® President. “Meeting that demand is a process and will take time.”

“As every seller creates an opportunity, we’re hopeful that more homeowners will enter the market as things open up this spring and summer.”

Despite the drop in pending contracts reported in February, home sales increased almost 30 percent last month putting the first quarter of 2021 about three percent ahead of last year.

The average home sale price rose to $272,723 during first quarter 2021, an increase of 13.1 percent from one year ago. At $233,500, the median sale price reflected a gain of 11.2 percent.

Although homes have been selling in about 25 days this year, the time it takes a home to sell is based on several factors such as location, condition, and price. 

Homes under $350,000 sold in an average of 20 days. Homes sold between $350,000 and $500,000 took about 33 days to sell. Homes sold between $500,000 and $700,000 sold in an average of 52 days and homes over $700,000 took an average of 64 days to sell.

Homes under $350,000 sold in an average of 21 days. Homes sold between $350,000 and $500,000 took about 39 days to sell. Homes sold between $500,000 and $700,000 sold in an average of 57 days and homes over $700,000 took an average of 68 days to sell.
 
The average home sale price was $266,893 in February, an increase of 13.4 percent. At $255,500, the median sale price reflected a 7.4 percent gain.
 
With demand significantly outpacing supply, most homes sold in February sold for more than the list price. Those home that did sell for more than asking price, sold for an average of five percent more.
 
“Many homeowners have been reluctant to open their homes for showing due to concerns about the pandemic,” added Jones. “We expect to see an increase in sellers entering the market this spring as more and more people get vaccinated.”
 
March 2021 Housing Report

Columbus REALTORS® is comprised of over 8,700 real estate professionals engaged in residential sales and leasing, commercial sales and leasing, property management, appraisal, consultation, real estate syndication, land development and more.
 
The Columbus REALTORS® Multiple Listing Service (MLS) serves all of Franklin, Delaware, Fayette, Licking, Madison, Morrow, Pickaway and Union Counties and parts of Athens, Champaign, Clark, Clinton, Fairfield, Hocking, Knox, Logan, Marion, Muskingum, Perry and Ross counties.