Housing starts in May rose 4.3% to an annual rate of 974,000, its first increase since January and up from a five-year low of 934,000 in April. The increase was less than expected by economists but builder permits were up 14.4% for the month to 1.22 million annually, signaling higher housing starts are likely in the near future.

In the Twin Cities region, for the week ending June 20:

• New Listings decreased 16.4% to 1,728
• Pending Sales increased 3.4% to 1,594
• Inventory decreased 22.8% to 9,871

For the month of May:

• Median Sales Price increased 3.5% to $294,900
• Days on Market decreased 8.9% to 41
• Percent of Original List Price Received decreased 0.4% to 99.6%
• Months Supply of Homes For Sale decreased 16.0% to 2.1

All comparisons are to 2019

Click here for the full Weekly Market Activity Report. From MAAR Market Data News.