The figures from Realty Trac also shows that sales are down 12% from a year ago, the third month in a row when annualised sales volume has decreased on a year on year basis.
But prices are up. The median price of residential properties sold in July, including both distressed and non-distressed sales, was $191,000, up 3% from the previous month, and up 12% from a year ago to the highest level since September 2008, a 70 month high.
‘As distressed sales continue to decline, the share of sales is tilting toward more expensive homes, boosting the nationwide median sales price,’ said Daren Blomquist, vice president of RealtyTrac.
‘The nationwide home price increase, however, masks slowing home price appreciation in the majority of housing markets across the country. This slowing appreciation was expected and provides another sign that the real estate recovery thus far is behaving rationally,’ he explained.
‘Still, the housing market is entering a dicey transition phase where it is becoming much more reliant on first time home buyers and move-up buyers to sustain the recovery as investor involvement wanes,’ he added.
Properties selling in the $200,000 and below price range accounted for 49% of all sales in July, down from 52% of all sales a year ago, while properties selling above $200,000 accounted for 51% of all sales in July, up from 48% of all sales a year ago.
States with the biggest annual increase in median sales prices were Michigan with growth of 24%, Ohio up 20%, Virginia also up 20%, Minnesota up 14% and New York up 13%.
Metros with the biggest annual increase in median sales price included Detroit up 33%, Dayton, Ohio, up 31%, Stockton, California up 24%, Modesto, California up 22%, Cleveland up 20% and Miami up 19%.
Among 183 metropolitan statistical areas with a population of 200,000 or more and with sufficient sales data, 119 or 65% saw lower annual home price appreciation in July 2014 compared to July 2013.
Markets where annual home price appreciation in July 2014 dropped to single digits from double digits a year ago included San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles, Chicago, Portland, Denver and Phoenix.
Out of the 183 major markets, 18 or 10% reached new median home price peaks in the last two months, including Denver, San Jose, Calif., Columbus, Ohio, Charlotte, N.C., Austin, Texas, Nashville, Tenn., and Oklahoma City.
The median price of distressed sales, properties in the foreclosure process or bank owned, was $128,000 in July, up 3% from the previous month and up 11% from a year ago, but still 37% below the median price of non-distressed sales at $204,000.
