Home prices in Dallas-Fort Worth dipped for the first time in a decade, after years of steady growth and an unprecedented post-pandemic surge.
The region saw a 1.2 percent drop in home prices year-over-year in March, marking the first such decline in DFW since February 2012, the Dallas Morning News reported, citing a study from the S&P Corelogic Case-Shiller Index.
Home prices in March were down 7.5 percent from last June, when the housing market was at its peak. Prices went up slightly from February to March, though, which could signal that the steady drop in prices since last summer has come to an end, S&P managing director Craig Lazzara told the outlet.
The S&P study measures a three-month moving average that compares sales-price changes of properties over time. While it’s a couple of months behind current market conditions, the index is considered more accurate than home sales data from agents, which can be swayed by specific properties that sell each month, the outlet said.
The median price of a single-family home in DFW fell 5 percent year-over-year in April to $404,450, according to data from Realtor associations. Plus, the 7,429 transactions last month were down 8 percent from a year prior. High interest rates, low inventory and fears of a recession are a big reason for the drop in sales activity.
While prices are relatively low at the moment, low inventory could drive prices back up, as prospective buyers make offers beyond initial asking prices.
“As inventory remains a challenge in this market, so too will affordability be rocked by stubbornly high prices that aren’t looking to move drastically any time soon,” Nicole Bachaud, senior economist for Zillow, told the outlet.
The scope of the market could be clearer later this summer, when house hunting is typically at full swing. However, many would-be sellers and buyers might sit on the sidelines until interest rates drop and market conditions recover.
—Quinn Donoghue
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