GRAY, Tenn. – Tri-Cities area home sales were down for the fifth straight month in November. The price growth rate slowing also continued but not enough to cause a decline. November’s median price was 7.1% higher than last year, and the 11-month trend is up 16.8%. 

There were 582 closings last month for, a 28.9% decline from last year. The median sales price of $225,000 was down $5,250 from October and $15,000 more than it was last year. The average sales price was $263,372, up 4.4% from last year. There will be revisions on the mid-month update when the late closings are added to the mix. 

“What we’re seeing is a combination of sales stabilizing and resuming a seasonal pattern,” said Northeast Tennessee Association of Realtors (NETAR) President Rick Chantry. “Sales are now performing at a slightly slower pace than they were the year before the pandemic. Prices have made slight declines every month since August, but the region remains on track for its third straight double-digit annual price appreciation.”   

The slower sales pace has not significantly added to active inventory. There were 1,357 active listings at the end of November, 10 more than the previous month and 138 fewer than last year. The region had 1.8 months of inventory at the end of November. That’s how long it would take to sell all listings at the current sales pace. “That’s a slight increase from last year when we ended November with 1.5 months of inventory,” Chantry said.  

Homes are spending a little more time on the market for selling – a sign that demand is waning. But, like the inventory situation, the change is very slight. 

The average sale that closed last month was on the market for 49 days, up from 48 days in October. Days on the market have increased every month since August. However, homes are still selling faster than they were this time last year when the median time on the market was 54 days. 

 November sales were down in all but four of the 17 community and sub-markets monitored by NETAR’s Home Sales Report. Prices increased in all but five of those sub-markets.