The resilience of Philly’s real estate market is ‘impressive.’ See if you can guess national market trends.
The National Association of Realtors’ annual report details who’s buying and selling homes and how they’re going about it.
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Home buyers in the Philadelphia area have been resilient, continuing to purchase homes even as prices rise and buying has become less affordable.
Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at listing service Bright MLS, called the local market’s resiliency “impressive” in the face of elevated mortgage interest rates.
This month, the National Association of Realtors released its annual report detailing who is buying and selling homes and how they’re going about it. The national data give some insight into consumer behavior and trends to provide clues for what the industry can expect from the market. And buyers and sellers can see how their experiences compare with the typical buyer and seller nationally.
The association has been publishing its analysis since 1981. This year’s report examines real estate transactions of primary residences between July 2022 and June 2023.
See how well you know the national real estate market.
Question 1 of 10
True or false: Half of all home buyers were purchasing their first home.
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About a third of buyers were purchasing their first home.
Question 2 of 10
What was the median age of a first-time home buyer?
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The typical repeat-buyer was 58.
Question 3 of 10
How long did buyers typically search before finding their home?
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And buyers looked at a median of seven properties.
Question 4 of 10
True or false: More single women than single men bought homes.
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One in five buyers were single women. One in 10 were single men.
Question 5 of 10
What percentage of buyers had no children under 18 living with them?
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70% is the highest share of buyers without children the National Association of Realtors has ever recorded.
Question 6 of 10
What was the typical down payment for first-time buyers?
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First-time buyers haven’t put this much down since 1997, when the typical down payment was 9%.
Question 7 of 10
How long did sellers typically live in their homes before selling?
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Question 8 of 10
When was the typical home that was sold built?
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Question 9 of 10
What percentage of home buyers financed the purchase of their home instead of paying with cash?
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Question 10 of 10
True or false: Most sellers bought a bigger home.
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39% of sellers bought a larger home, and 33% bought a smaller one.
The end of the year is typically a slower time for home sales, and potential buyers may wait for the spring, hoping for lower mortgage interest rates and more homes on the market. Mortgage rates have been trending downward since late October. If they keep falling, more buyers and sellers are likely to enter the market.
Staff Contributors
- Reporter: Michaelle Bond
- Digital Editor: Katie Krzaczek
- Editor: Erica Palan