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.

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.

Increasing costs and declining availability of key building materials dampened builder sentiment, as higher costs have pushed some new homes beyond the budget of prospective buyers.

Some cities fared better than others with the global pandemic and Houston is one of them, according to The Economist’s 2021 Livability Index’s ranking of the most livable cities in the world.

Rising property values had homeowners cashing out of their existing residences to buy bigger homes in less-expensive areas last year.

Houston’s inventory hits record lows and single-family home prices reach record highs as the city experiences its twelfth consecutive month of positive sales in May.

High-end home sales surged in the three months ended April 30 as prices also rose and listings increased.

With half of all homes in today’s market selling above the asking price, the timing of when to list can have an impact on both time on market and sale price.

“By the time we closed the books on 2020, we had achieved a record year for Houston housing. Halfway through 2021, we are on track to set a new record.” — Richard Miranda, 2021 chairman of the Houston Association of Realtors