CLAY COUNTY – The Northeast Florida housing market continued to show a minor drop in prices in September, the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors said.

With the holidays on the horizon, a market slowdown in the fall is typical, but considering the historic heights that prices have risen during the recent pandemic, the question remains: How much of this slight slippage is due to seasonal change or rather by current economic conditions driven by rising interest rates?

Following the same trend that it has experienced over the past several months, prices continue to inch down, while month-to-month days on the market, active inventory, and months of supply trend upward. Even with slightly lower prices, housing continues to be less affordable in Northeast Florida, according to the Housing Affordability Index, which measures housing affordability by evaluating whether a typical family earns enough to qualify for a mortgage on a typical home based on current interest rates, median income, and median home prices. A higher number means greater affordability. In September, the Housing Affordability Index for single-family homes, condos and townhouses slid 3.9% to 74 from 77.

In Clay County, the median price of single-family homes dropped to $355,990 in September, decreasing slightly by 2.9% from August. The median days on the market were 33, an increase of 26.9%. Month-to-month, closed sales dropped 23.5% to 241, pending sales dropped 19.0% to 239, and new listings dropped 18.7% to 422. Active inventory for the county was 789 homes, an increase of 13.7% from August and a 3.3-month supply. The affordability index registered at 74, a 2.6% drop from the previous month.

Affordability for only single-family homes declined by 4.2% to 69 in the region.

Considering the combined single-family, townhouse, and condo market’s month-over-month numbers for September, the median price was $354,990, down 2.7%, while days on the market rose to 37 days, up from 31 days in August, and the end of summer’s active inventory registered at 6,421 listings, increasing from 6,348 since August. Months of supply rose to 3.4 months, slightly higher than 2.7 the month before. Closed sales tumbled to 1,921 in September, and pending sales took a dive to 1,979 from the month before.

“Closed and pending unit sales suffered from Hurricane Ian’s impact when the powerful storm interrupted services during the last week of the month, a time when many properties close and/or go under contract. Many of the properties scheduled to close in that last week should shift to close in the first half of October. With that said, these indicators are down 23.3% and 17.4% month over month respectively,” said Mark Rosener, president of the NEFAR.

“While still in a “sellers” market the trend continues to move toward a more balanced market,” Rosener said. “Weakening demand due to affordability issues – mainly higher mortgage rates -- and growing inventory points in that direction. The 3% decrease month over month in the median price is expected as the market stabilizes from the frenzied pace that was set in 2021 and early 2022. I anticipate that the median price will continue to fluctuate month to month in the 3-5% range in either direction for the balance of the year,” he said.