November home sales saw the second-highest year-over-year increase in 2012, with a 15.7 percent rise from last November. October had a 17.8 percent increase, making sales this fall season unusually high. The November RE/MAX National Housing Report, a survey of MLS data in 52 metropolitan areas, also shows that home prices rose 6.9 percent higher than the prices seen in November 2011. The median price for homes sold this November was $163,750. Rising prices are due mostly to a dwindling inventory, which continued to drop across the country. The average number of homes for sale is now 29.1 percent lower than last year. Low inventory levels are having a negative impact on home sales in many markets, where there are more buyers than homes for sale.
Source: RE/MAX National Housing Report