New listings lagged behind their 2020 performance for a fifth consecutive week during Week 43.

Realtors entered 2,376 properties into the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), down 13.3% from 2,739 during the same week last year, according to the Houston Association of Realtors (HAR) weekly activity snapshot.

Last week’s slight increase in pending listings was short-lived, as a total of 2,307 property listings went under contract for the week ended Nov. 1, a 10.3% drop from 2020. “This could portend a slower pace of closings in the weeks ahead,” the report said. 

Sellers withdrew fewer property listings from the MLS during Week 43 during the same week in 2020. Off-market listings remained 30% below where they were last year at this time. A total of 1,088 homes went from active to off-market status compared to 1,554 last year.

Sold listings experienced a fractional decline compared to the same week last year. Despite this, numbers are still tracking ahead of 2020’s record levels, according to the report. Closed sales of homes in Week 43 totaled 2,651 compared to 2,673 for the same week last year. On a year-to-date basis, local home sales have been 15.3% ahead of 2020.

Consumers showed less interest in property showings than during the same week in 2020. As a result, year-over-year traffic at Houston-area showings fell 22.3% for the week ended Nov. 1. Showings volume totaled 29,861 compared to 38,443 last year.