Home sales continue to increase each month presenting a healthy picture of the central Ohio housing market.  The 2,064 homes sold in May marked a 15.7 percent increase over the number of sales the previous month according to the Columbus Board of REALTORS®.

Low interest rates, high inventory and competitive pricing continue to fuel the housing market here in central Ohio, says Greg Hrabcak, President of the Columbus Board of REALTORS®. As long as we have these three critical factors in place, home buyers and investors are actively pursuing a home purchase.

There remains a large selection of homes for sale in central Ohio. However, that number continues to decline supporting the anticipated correction in our housing market. Last month, there were over 17,900 homes for sale which is a little over five percent fewer than last year in the month of May. There were 4,703 homes added to the market in May which is eight percent lower than the 5,118 homes listed in May of last year.

Although buyers continue to be thrilled with the large selection of homes for sale, any decrease in the number of homes added to the market is welcome news for sellers, says Hrabcak. As long as inventory remains high, homes are taking longer to sell and selling for less.

The average list price of a home for sale last month was $173,826 which is 3.8 percent lower than the average list price of a home in May of 2007. Accordingly, the average sale price ($168,345) was almost four percent lower than the same month last year.

Year to date sales of new and existing homes (January through May) total 8,367, 14.1 percent behind the 9,737 sales recorded during the first five months of 2007 but only about three percent behind the market's pre-boom period (prior to 2003).