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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 66 February 2024 J O U R N A L MORTGAGE RATE DROPS ENCOURAGING MARKET ACTIVITY H ouseCanary's December Market Pulse Report showed that activity in terms of net new listings placed on the market is up 5% versus December 2022. With the Federal Reserve keeping rates steady in December and mortgage rates dropping slightly, affordability has marginally improved. As a result, the market saw the first signs of positive activity in terms of both net new listings and properties under contract. Cooling inflation and anticipated rate cuts this year signal that further positive momen- tum is to come. However, given that in- ventory remains at historically low levels, sales growth is expected to be gradual and modest. "The slight increase in December listings indicates the impact of lower mortgage rates is beginning to trickle down into the market, which comes as an optimistic sign as we head into the new year," said Jeremy Sicklick, Co-Founder and CEO of HouseCanary. "With that said, any market turns are likely to be slow. The mortgage rate lock-in effect is going to keep many would-be sellers who secured pre-pandemic mortgage rates of sub-5% with little incentive to move, meaning low inventory will be a continuing trend. As we enter the year ahead, promising signs that the Federal Reserve will cut rates persist, which will provide at least some relief for homebuy- ers looking to purchase in 2024." Lending/Originations Key Takeaways: » Over the last 52 weeks, 2,504,407 net new listings were placed on the market, and 2,589,823 properties went under contract. This represents a de- crease of 18.1% and 13.5%, respectively, versus 2022. » For December 2023, 110,572 net new listings were placed on the market, and 183,184 properties went under contract. This represents an increase of 5.0% and 7.0%, respectively, versus December 2022. » The increase in net new listings was driven by a 0.8% decrease in new list- ing volume that was offset by a larger 9.5% decrease in removals compared to December 2022. » The median number of days on the market is 51. This is down 5.6% from where it was one year prior, at 54 days on the market. » The median price of all single-fam- ily listings in the United States was $424,729, and the median closed price was $394,223. On a year-over-year ba- sis, the median price of all single-fam- ily listings is up 3.1%, and the median price of closed listings is up 5.6%. » Month over month, the median price of single-family listings is down 1.2%, and the median price of closed listings is down 0.5%. Contract Volume and Net New Listing Volume Over the last 52 weeks, 2,504,407 net new listings were placed on the market, and 2,589,823 properties went under con- tract. This represents a decrease of 18.1% and 13.5%, respectively. For December 2023, 110,572 net new listings were placed on the market, and 183,184 properties went under contract. This represents an increase of 5.0% and 7.0%, respectively, versus December 2022. The increase in net new listings was driven by a 0.8% decrease in new listing volume that was offset by a larger 9.5% decrease in removals compared to December 2022. The interest rate shock is having the biggest impact on net new listing volume which remains sharply down year over year. Contract volume is also down year