How much are houses selling for Centre County? The latest on the real estate market

The median home sale price in Centre County in April was roughly 14% higher than the month’s five-year average, according to area realtors.

The median home sale price checked in at $349,000 in April, according to the Centre County Association of Realtors’ most recent market trend report. The mid-point figure marks a 1.2% bump from March ($345,000) and a 4.2% increase from April 2022 ($335,000).

April’s median home sale price reflects a roughly 13.9% increase from the month’s five-year average of $306,195, according to the Centre County Association of Realtors.

Though April’s median home sale price grew from March, it still falls well below February’s figure. The Centre County Association of Realtors reported a median home sale price of $373,000 for February, marking the highest monthly mid-point sale price of the past five years.

The last five years have produced generally steady growth for Centre County’s median home sale price, though gains have become more significant in 2022 and early 2023, despite a sharp fall in January.

Centre County’s median home sale price has generally grown over the past five years, according to monthly market data published by the county’s Realtors association and Bright MLS.
Centre County’s median home sale price has generally grown over the past five years, according to monthly market data published by the county’s Realtors association and Bright MLS.

Eighty-seven property sales closed in April, according to the Realtors’ association. That’s down roughly 33% from April 2022, but up 7.4% from March, when 81 property sales were finalized.

Just 131 new properties were listed in Centre County throughout April, down 6.4% from March and 25.6% from April 2022. Four hundred and thirty-one listings have hit the market so far in this year, down from 571 through four months in 2022.

Properties left Centre County’s market quickly in April, according to the month’s report. On average, homes spent 23 days on the market, falling well below the month’s five-year average of 36 days.

The county’s real estate activity in April resulted in a contract ratio of 1.30 pending sales per active listing — an increase from March’s 0.92 contract ratio, but a significant decrease from April 2022’s 2.09 pending sales per active listing.

Generally, a higher contract ratio reflects an increase in contract activity compared to the local supply, according to the Centre County Association of Realtors. Higher contract ratios generally indicate a market is moving in the favor of sellers.

Is now the time to sell your Centre County home? The latest data for buyers, sellers

National real estate site Realtor.com reports the State College area reflects a buyer’s market, indicating the local supply of homes exceeds demand.

On average, homes in the State College area have seen their values increase by about 5.5% in the last year, according to Zillow’s Home Value Index. The average home in the area is worth roughly $380,950, according to data available through April 30.