More Than 40% of Home Sellers Are Dropping Their Prices in Salt Lake City, Boise, Sacramento and Other Pandemic Hot Spots

by Jim Marks

Sellers are adjusting their expectations as they realize many buyers are no longer able to afford the type of home they could have before mortgage rates shot up.

An increasing share of home sellers are lowering their asking price as rapidly rising mortgage rates cut into buyers’ budgets and homebuying sentiment drops. Price drops are especially common in mid-sized metros in the West–particularly in Utah–many of which had outsized price growth during the pandemic because they were hotspots for people moving in from other parts of the country. 

Nearly half (47.8%) of homes for sale in Provo, UT–located about 45 miles away from Salt Lake City–had a price drop in May, the highest share of the 108 metropolitan divisions in this analysis. Tacoma, WA, had about the same share of price cuts, at 47.7%. Next come Denver (46.9%), (Salt Lake City 45.8%) and Sacramento (44.3%). Boise, ID (44.2%), Ogden, UT (42.6%), Portland, OR (42%), Indianapolis, IN (41.9%) and Philadelphia (41.2%) round out the top 10. 

Provo, Boise, Salt Lake City, Sacramento and Ogden were also the top five metros with the biggest increase in the share of listings with price drops from a year earlier. Roughly 12% of listings in Provo and Boise had a price drop in May 2021, and it was around 20% in Salt Lake City, Sacramento and Ogden

All in all, about half (53) of the metros in this analysis saw more than 25% of home sellers drop their asking price in May. More than 10% of home sellers dropped their price in all 108 metros, driving the national share of price drops to a record high

The uptick in price drops is symbolic of the slowdown in the housing market. Many buyers are backing off amid skyrocketing home prices, surging mortgage rates, high inflation and a faltering stock market. 

“There are two kinds of sellers in today’s market: Those who already know the market has cooled, and those who are learning about the cooling market as they go through the selling process,” said Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather. “The former wants to sell quickly before the market slows further and they’re willing to price slightly below comparable homes in their neighborhood right away, and the latter may have to drop their price if their home doesn’t attract buyers within a few weeks. As more sellers come to terms with the slowing market, fewer homes will have price drops.” 

Sellers are adjusting expectations in Salt Lake City, Boise

Four of the 10 metros with the highest share of price drops–Provo, Salt Lake City, Boise and Ogden–are among the 10 places where prices increased most during the pandemic. Prices shot up 65.7% to $550,000 from May 2020 to May 2022 in Provo,  They rose 56.2% to $556,000 in Salt Lake City, 66.7% in Boise to $550,000 and 57.2% to $500,000 in Ogden

The soaring prices were largely due to out-of-town homebuyers moving in during the pandemic, competing with locals for a limited supply of homes. Migration into both Boise and the Salt Lake City metro area–which includes Provo and Ogden–nearly tripled throughout 2020. The trend has started to reverse in both places, with Salt Lake City seeing a net outflow (more Redfin.com users looking to leave than move in) for the first time on record in the first quarter. 

“Many buyers are backing out of the market–and even backing out of deals–and some sellers are responding by dropping their price,” said Boise Redfin agent Shauna Pendleton. “Some buyers are no longer able to afford the home they want because mortgage rates have increased so much. There aren’t nearly as many people moving into the Boise area now that prices have gone through the roof. Ironically, a lot of  Boise newcomers are now leaving because the quiet, slow-paced lifestyle that drew them here doesn’t exist the way it did before so many people moved in. Those people are cashing in on their equity to move to more affordable areas, mainly in the Midwest, where they can get more for their money–in some cases, they can even pay all cash.” 

The share of homes with a price drop increased from a year earlier in 102 of the 108 metros in this analysis. It declined in six metros, three of them in Illinois: McAllen, TX, Elgin, IL, Chicago, Fresno, CA, Lake County, IL and Springfield, MA.

Share of Homes for Sale With a Price Drop in May 2022

108 metropolitan divisions that are part of the 100 most populous U.S. metropolitan areas, sorted by share of for-sale listings with a price drop in May 2022

Metropolitan Division Share of Homes for Sale with a Price Drop in May 2022 Share of Homes for Sale with a Price Drop in May 2021 Median Sale Price, May 2022 Change in Median Sale Price, May 2020 to May 2022
Provo, UT 47.8% 12.2% $550,000 65.7%
Tacoma, WA 47.7% 28.2% $575,000 46.8%
Denver, CO 46.9% 24.0% $614,000 41.1%
Salt Lake City, UT 45.8% 18.7% $556,000 56.2%
Sacramento, CA 44.3% 20.7% $610,000 43.5%
Boise, ID 44.2% 11.9% $549,990 66.7%
Ogden, UT 42.6% 19.3% $500,000 57.2%
Portland, OR 42.0% 24.6% $570,500 36.2%
Indianapolis, IN 41.9% 26.4% $285,000 32.6%
Philadelphia, PA 41.2% 26.6% $290,000 24.7%
Seattle, WA 40.6% 24.2% $850,000 46.6%
Harrisburg, PA 40.6% 22.3% $260,050 27.4%
Tampa, FL 39.6% 22.5% $384,000 53.6%
North Port, FL 39.5% 23.9% $475,000 66.7%
San Diego, CA 37.6% 16.9% $875,000 46.3%
Baltimore, MD 37.5% 24.2% $371,000 23.7%
Cape Coral, FL 37.2% 17.7% $420,000 72.0%
Spokane, WA 37.0% 19.6% $453,946 51.8%
Stockton, CA 36.6% 15.3% $580,000 42.5%
New Orleans, LA 36.4% 22.9% $305,000 29.7%
Frederick, MD 34.0% 18.8% $562,000 28.0%
Grand Rapids, MI 34.0% 19.8% $312,250 39.4%
Lakeland, FL 33.7% 16.4% $334,950 57.3%
Houston, TX 33.4% 20.0% $350,000 40.4%
Phoenix, AZ 32.9% 13.4% $486,000 62.1%
Washington, D.C. 32.7% 19.6% $554,225 26.0%
Bakersfield, CA 31.2% 28.6% $365,000 41.5%
Tulsa, OK 30.9% 24.4% $250,000 30.7%
Fresno, CA 30.6% 37.1% $411,000 43.1%
Orlando, FL 29.8% 20.3% $397,000 43.8%
San Antonio, TX 29.5% 13.5% $351,000 45.0%
Riverside, CA 29.3% 10.0% $577,000 49.9%
Richmond, VA 29.1% 17.4% $365,000 32.7%
Montgomery County, PA 29.0% 18.1% $426,000 22.5%
Anaheim, CA 28.7% 10.2% $1,059,000 46.1%
Oakland, CA 28.6% 15.0% $1,077,500 42.7%
San Francisco, CA 28.5% 16.9% $1,625,000 8.3%
Omaha, NE 28.3% 17.2% $291,750 28.0%
Minneapolis, MN 28.2% 18.7% $375,000 27.1%
Baton Rouge, LA 28.0% 15.6% $254,900 21.4%
Atlanta, GA 27.6% 16.7% $400,000 53.8%
Des Moines, IA 26.9% 18.0% $275,000 23.6%
Warren, MI 26.3% 19.5% $291,331 31.8%
Jacksonville, FL 26.2% 13.5% $368,769 47.2%
Las Vegas, NV 26.0% 13.1% $450,000 50.0%
Oklahoma City, OK 25.9% 23.9% $260,000 32.5%
San Jose, CA 25.8% 16.2% $1,560,000 30.0%
Austin, TX 25.7% 10.3% $556,000 68.5%
Colorado Springs, CO 25.6% 14.4% $480,000 41.2%
Buffalo, NY 25.4% 20.4% $230,000 38.1%
Dallas, TX 25.3% 13.2% $467,000 55.7%
Fort Worth, TX 25.2% 12.2% $385,000 54.0%
Camden, NJ 25.0% 15.3% $305,000 45.2%
Cleveland, OH 24.7% 14.7% $210,000 27.3%
Virginia Beach, VA 24.5% 11.6% $325,000 22.6%
Rochester, NY 24.0% 19.5% $210,000 31.3%
Allentown, PA 23.8% 16.0% $300,000 33.3%
Oxnard, CA 23.7% 9.3% $840,000 36.6%
St. Louis, MO 23.3% 17.5% $249,000 25.1%
Kansas City, MO 23.2% 14.0% $319,500 33.2%
Charlotte, NC 23.1% 10.7% $401,780 47.5%
Worcester, MA 23.1% 14.6% $405,000 30.6%
Louisville, KY 22.8% 14.5% $255,000 23.0%
Detroit, MI 22.8% 15.1% $188,000 39.3%
Los Angeles, CA 22.8% 10.7% $900,000 42.9%
Dayton, OH 22.7% 15.2% $205,200 30.7%
Boston, MA 22.6% 17.8% $690,000 30.2%
New York, NY 22.4% 21.0% $729,000 27.9%
Albany, NY 22.4% 16.0% $290,000 23.4%
Akron, OH 22.0% 14.5% $200,000 25.1%
Deltona, FL 21.3% 13.7% $342,990 51.8%
Nashville, TN 21.2% 13.8% $465,000 47.6%
West Palm Beach, FL 20.9% 12.6% $460,000 52.6%
Nassau County, NY 20.8% 15.5% $624,000 30.0%
Pittsburgh, PA 19.7% 12.9% $230,000 24.3%
Little Rock, AR 19.4% 9.4% $215,000 21.5%
Memphis, TN 19.2% 8.2% $286,950 31.1%
Providence, RI 18.4% 11.6% $420,000 35.5%
Tucson, AZ 17.8% 8.6% $360,000 50.6%
Winston-Salem, NC 17.7% 10.5% $279,500 45.2%
Knoxville, TN 17.6% 8.9% $340,500 51.6%
Charleston, SC 17.4% 8.3% $430,000 48.3%
Durham, NC 17.1% 7.1% $450,000 50.9%
Raleigh, NC 17.1% 4.7% $442,000 44.9%
Syracuse, NY 16.8% 15.6% $185,000 17.8%
Greenville, SC 16.7% 8.7% $324,995 41.0%
Greensboro, NC 16.7% 10.9% $268,000 42.6%
McAllen, TX 16.4% 28.8% $220,000 37.9%
Birmingham, AL 16.4% 10.4% $301,000 25.5%
Hartford, CT 15.8% 10.6% $300,000 27.7%
Fort Lauderdale, FL 15.4% 11.0% $400,000 40.4%
Poughkeepsie, NY 15.3% 8.9% $400,000 43.6%
Bridgeport, CT 15.1% 12.8% $574,444 27.9%
Cincinnati, OH 14.8% 11.2% $268,000 34.0%
Columbus, OH 14.6% 11.2% $329,900 37.5%
New Brunswick, NJ 14.1% 11.8% $465,000 32.9%
Chicago, IL 13.9% 20.6% $330,000 24.5%
Palm Bay, FL 13.8% 9.1% $355,000 47.9%
Miami, FL 13.7% 8.8% $490,000 49.8%
New Haven, CT 13.6% 9.6% $310,000 33.6%
Milwaukee, WI 13.0% 9.1% $295,000 22.9%
Lake County, IL 12.8% 18.8% $324,800 34.1%
Honolulu, HI 12.5% 7.4% $705,000 15.1%
Elgin, IL 11.7% 21.4% $310,000 28.2%
El Paso, TX 11.4% 7.1% $237,950 39.8%
Newark, NJ 11.3% 10.8% $520,000 36.1%
Madison, WI 10.8% 7.7% $375,000 25.0%
Springfield, MA 13.5% 13.6% $305,000 31.5%

The post More Than 40% of Home Sellers Are Dropping Their Prices in Salt Lake City, Boise, Sacramento and Other Pandemic Hot Spots appeared first on Redfin Real Estate News.

Jim Marks

Jim Marks

Broker Associate | RSAB068681

+1(610) 705-4014

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