New listings also lost their momentum during the week, lowering hopes that the limited supply of homes on the market would be replenished soon.

The seasonally adjusted estimate of new houses for sale at the end of May was 330,000, representing a supply of 5.1 months at the current sales rate, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development reported.

The median existing-home price for all housing types rose to $350,300 in May, marking another new record.

Market competition has eased up recently, but seven in 10 buyers still face bidding wars, according to a new report from Redfin.

On a year-over-year basis, new-home mortgage applications were down 5.9% in May, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported, citing its Builder Application Survey.

Inventory levels rebounded last month, finally showing signs of recovery following a year of historical declines.

The typical increase in home sales as summer approaches failed to materialize nationwide last month, with average sales dropping 0.2% from April to May, but month-over-month sales in Houston bucked the trend, climbing 1.3%, according to the RE/MAX May National Housing Report.

HAR’s weekly activity snapshot shows that for the second consecutive week, new listings continued to rise, helping alleviate some of the pressure on dwindling inventory.

Single-family housing starts were up 4.2% from April and 49.8% from May 2020, at 1,098,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Although pending sales are up 29% from last year, they are starting to slow down, dropping 9.7% from their peak four weeks ago.