15 Cities With the Largest Drop in Home Sales in 2022

Editor's Note: This story originally appeared on Construction Coverage.

The housing market is entering the traditionally quieter winter season, but recent indicators suggest that the market has already been slowing in the last few months.

New listings, pending sales, and prices are all on the decline, signs of rapid cooling after a two-year frenzy in the market.

One of the primary factors driving the slowing of the market has been inflation.

Adding to this pressure is an increase in interest rates. The average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has increased from around 3% at the end of 2021 to about 6.5% now. In October, the average 30-year rate briefly passed 7% for the first time since before the Great Recession.

As a result of these factors, total home sales per month have been down year-over-year for every month in 2022. Few places have escaped the slowing of the market, but some locations are experiencing especially stark drops in activity.

To determine the locations with the largest drop in home sales, researchers at Construction Coverage calculated the percentage change in home sales from October 2021 to October 2022. In the event of a tie, the location with the greater percentage change in median days on market over the same time period was ranked higher. The data used in this analysis is from Redfin.

Here are the U.S. metropolitan areas with the largest drop in home sales.

15. Fresno, CA

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -33.4%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +118.2%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 565
• Total home sales per month (2021): 848
• Median days on market (2022): 24
• Median days on market (2021): 11

14. Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -34.2%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +16.7%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 2,823
• Total home sales per month (2021): 4,289
• Median days on market (2022): 28
• Median days on market (2021): 24

13. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -36.2%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +20.6%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 5,730
• Total home sales per month (2021): 8,985
• Median days on market (2022): 35
• Median days on market (2021): 29

12. San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -36.7%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +76.9%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 2,892
• Total home sales per month (2021): 4,571
• Median days on market (2022): 25
• Median days on market (2021): 14

11. Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -36.8%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +158.3%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 1,855
• Total home sales per month (2021): 2,934
• Median days on market (2022): 31
• Median days on market (2021): 12

10. Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -37.3%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +214.3%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 3,524
• Total home sales per month (2021): 5,619
• Median days on market (2022): 22
• Median days on market (2021): 7

9. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -38.6%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +35.3%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 5,918
• Total home sales per month (2021): 9,634
• Median days on market (2022): 45
• Median days on market (2021): 33

8. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -38.9%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +202.8%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 4,062
• Total home sales per month (2021): 6,648
• Median days on market (2022): 22
• Median days on market (2021): 7

7. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -39.5%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +45.2%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 3,495
• Total home sales per month (2021): 5,777
• Median days on market (2022): 45
• Median days on market (2021): 31

6. Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -39.6%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +150.0%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 2,488
• Total home sales per month (2021): 4,117
• Median days on market (2022): 25
• Median days on market (2021): 10

5. Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -40.2%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +85.7%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 4,921
• Total home sales per month (2021): 8,230
• Median days on market (2022): 52
• Median days on market (2021): 28

4. San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -41.5%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +100.0%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 1,931
• Total home sales per month (2021): 3,302
• Median days on market (2022): 28
• Median days on market (2021): 14

3. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -41.5%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +108.3%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 997
• Total home sales per month (2021): 1,703
• Median days on market (2022): 25
• Median days on market (2021): 12

2. Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -43.4%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +103.8%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 2,271
• Total home sales per month (2021): 4,011
• Median days on market (2022): 53
• Median days on market (2021): 26

1. Salt Lake City, UT

• Percentage change in home sales (YoY): -47.1%
• Percentage change in median days on market (YoY): +185.7%
• Total home sales per month (2022): 866
• Total home sales per month (2021): 1,638
• Median days on market (2022): 40
• Median days on market (2021): 14

Methodology

The data used in this analysis is from Redfin’s Data Center.

To determine the locations with the largest drop in home sales, researchers at Construction Coverage calculated the percentage change in home sales, year over year, from October 2021 to October 2022.

In the event of a tie, the location with the greater percentage change in median days on market over the same time period was ranked higher.

To improve relevance, only metropolitan areas with at least 100,000 residents were included.

Note: Certain metropolitan areas and states were excluded due to insufficient data. Additionally, state- and metro-level data do not sum to the national statistics due to differences in Redfin data coverage across local markets.