While fewer houses are being bought and sold in the first months of the pandemic, prices are on the rise as buyers find less supply available on the market.
"Home sales may have slowed to a trickle, as much of the national economy shut down in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, but home prices did just the opposite," reports Diana Olick.
"Nationally, values rose 5.4% annually in April, a sharp increase from the 4.5% annual increase in March," adds Olick, citing data from CoreLogic.
The rising prices have coincided with a decline in supply, especially at the entry level into the market. "The inventory of entry-level homes for sale fell 25% in April from a year ago," explains Olick. Frank Nothaft, chief economist at CoreLogic, is quoted saying that the lack of supply is likely to contribute to rising housing prices through the spring.
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