Existing-home sales declined nationwide for the fourth month in a row in May, as the median price for existing homes hit another record high, the National Association of Realtors said. 

May showed the momentum keeps building in the South Florida housing market with rising prices and shorter times from listing to contract.

Mortgage applications for new-home purchases fell 9% on a monthly basis and 5.9% on a year-over-year basis in May, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported, citing its Builder Application Survey.

Market competition has eased up recently, but seven in 10 buyers still face bidding wars, according to a new report from Redfin.

As the South Florida economy rebounds, the real estate market squeezes out local residents with out-of-town buyers and an ‘on fire’ luxury segment.

Only six of the country’s top-50 largest markets saw inventory fall from April and new inventory has trended up since mid-March.

The typical increase in home sales as summer approaches failed to materialize nationwide last month, with average sales dropping 0.2% from April to May, but month-over-month sales in Miami dipped even further, declining 14.7%, according to the RE/MAX May National Housing Report.

Single-family housing starts were up 4.2% from April and 49.8% from May 2020, at 1,098,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Florida is the 14th-best state to live in the country, according to WalletHub’s 2021 Best States to Live In list. 

Although pending home sales are up 29% from last year, they are starting to slow down, dropping 9.7% from their peak four weeks ago.