Real Estate Market Watch Newsletter for May 2021

Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Gallo Realty provides this monthly analysis of the real estate market in Sussex County, Delaware.  Whether you are buying, selling or just have an interest in the market, we hope you will find this analysis useful. As a Buyer, this can be a valuable tool for making an offer on a property. Having up-to-date information on selling prices of comparable properties will allow you to make the smartest offer. As a Seller, having the knowledge to determine the listing price for your property, can help you to obtain the best possible sale price in the shortest amount of time. Contact one of our agents for reliable information on the real estate market.

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The statistics referenced here and in the attached newsletter are based on detached single-family homes, derived from the Bright Multiple Listing Service.

Active Listings/Current Inventory
As of the end of May, there were a total of 612 homes on the market, an increase of 6% from the previous month's end inventory of 579.  This represents less than a 2-month's supply of inventory, with a current absorption rate of 368 homes sold per month thus far in 2021.  There were 542 new listings of single-family homes put on the market in April, with 66% of them going under contract by the month’s end.  Of the 612 homes on the market at month’s end, 41% of them are new construction homes.

Closed Sales
For the first five months of 2021, sales of single-family homes in Sussex County are up 17% from last year, with 1,839 homes sold compared to 1,572 for the first five months of 2020.  The areas with the largest increase were the Georgetown Area, up 51% and the Angola/Long Neck/Millsboro Area, up 36%.  The only area with a decrease is the Milford/Lincoln/Slaughter Beach Area, down 8%.

Home Prices
The average sales price of single-family homes in Sussex County are up over the first 5-month period of last year, $505,437 compared to $427,367, an 18% increase.  The median sales price was also up over the first 5-months of 2020, $375,000 compared to $335,000, a 12% increase.

Pending Sales
Pending sales for the first five months of 2021 were up by 33% over last year, with 2,102 homes going under contract through May of 2021, compared to 1,581 in 2020.  This large increase can be attributed to the pandemic, where the market was basically shut down between mid-March and April of last year.

Days on Market
The average days on market for homes to go under contract has decreased by 36% for homes sold through May of this year compared to last.  In 2021, the current average days on market is 49 days, compared to 76 days through May of 2020.