July 2022 Cape Cod Market Report

1.) Sales Down as Expected, Prices Holding Steady

Real estate sales on Cape Cod through July are down - as expected. The market has seen a 20% decline in sales year over year for 2022 as we continue to have to compare ourselves to the high-water marks of both 2020 and 2021. And we still trail both 2018 and 2019 for sold properties through this point as well.

Those numbers being down were to be expected as the region borrowed buyers in 2020 and 2021 as those buyers moved up their timelines to purchase Cape Cod properties during the height of the pandemic and our real estate boom.

With inventory depleted and new listings not coming on at a rapid pace, there is just simply less to choose from than there was prior to 2020, as we are still down approximately 1,500 properties monthly for sale then what we had in the market prior to 2020.

However, prices are holding steady and are settling into what may be the new normal for Cape Cod. The median sales price for January through July is up almost 15%, but that is a decline in price appreciation from last July, where prices were rising more rapidly at a 30% year over year clip.

What can we expect going forward:
With inventory depleted (and failing to rebound substantially) and buyer demand shrinking, we can expect to see a tempering of price appreciation to a more sustainable level and the continued lower number of real estate sales.

2) Condos are Having Their Moment in the Spotlight

While Cape Cod’s existing home inventory is predominantly single-family homes, condominiums are having their moment getting in on price appreciation.

With many condos now being a place buyers - especially retirees and first-time home buyers - are turning to, we have seen a rapid 20% price appreciation in the median sales price for the year through July. July itself was stronger than the rest of the year with a 26% jump in the median sales price from last July.

This - along with interest rates rising - has compounded affordability for condos and we have seen the affordability index for condos slip by 32%, which is a faster pace than the 28% drop in affordability for single-family homes.

3) Condo Demand Outpacing Single-Family Homes Demand

The most interesting detail of the bump in condo prices is the measurement of demand - months supply of inventory. This measurement takes into account how long it would take to sell every home on the market.

Starting in May of this year, condos had a lower monthly supply of inventory than single-family homes in every month. This was the first time that happened since January 2019.

Here are the numbers:
Condos are at 1.5 months of inventory, which is lower than last July when it was 1.6 months. However, single-family homes have seen a jump from 1.4 months of supply last July to 1.9 months this July.

Single-family homes saw a low point of less than a month of inventory - about three weeks - while condos never saw less than a month of months supply of inventory.

Bottom Line: Condo demand is growing out of a lack of single-family homes for sale.

Here's the full July, 2022 Cape Cod Market Report

As Expected, Number of Sales Continues Decline, Prices Still Appreciating

According to preliminary data released last week by the Cape Cod & Islands Association of REALTORS® (CCIAOR), 347 homes were sold in July, 286 single-family homes, and 61 condominiums. The median sales price was $686,000 for single-family homes and $500,000 for condominiums. Last July, 456 homes (360 single-family homes and 96 condos) sold at a median price of $600,000 for single-family homes and $395,750 for condominiums.

Sales pending at the end of July were 319 for single-family homes and 71 for condominiums – a 10.6 percent decrease for single-family and a 23.7 percent decrease for condominiums, which will show up in closed home sales in the coming months. Last July, there were 357 pending single-family homes and 93 pending condominiums.

“We continue to see the decline in activity that we anticipated. With rising interest rates, buyers having moved up their timeline, and more travel abroad, we are seeing a decline in activity. However, inventory and new listings are staying historically low, which is keeping buyers in the market still going after a small amount of listings and keeping price appreciation up,” said Ryan Castle, chief executive officer of CCIAOR.

At the end of July, there were 558 single-family homes for sale and 119 condominiums for sale in the Cape Cod & Islands Multiple Listing Service. Last July, there were 581 single-family homes and 174 condos listed for sale, a 4 percent decrease, and a 31.6 percent decrease, respectively.

Cumulative days on market for July increased 9.1 percent for single-family homes compared to last July, increasing from 22 days to 24 days. Condominiums had a 47.8 percent decrease in cumulative days on market compared to last July, dropping from 46 days to 24 days.

Data released reflects all single-family homes and condominiums in the Cape Cod & Islands Multiple Listing Service for Barnstable County.

View historical and town-by-town market data at CapeCodRealEstateStats.com.