Across New York state, there were 38,445 homes sold, according to the New York State Association of Realtors Q3 housing market report. Although this represents a 3.1% drop from 39,693, the total number of homes sold from same quarter of 2016, the association remains optimistic noting it is the second best on record for the period.

Although the numbers of homes sold in the quarter decreased, the statewide median sales price for the quarter was $261,500, an increase of 5%, compared to the Q3 2016 median price of $249,000. The statewide median sales price through the first three quarters of the year was $250,00, a 5.5% increase from the same period in 2016. A total of 98,176 sales closed through the first nine months of 2017. That represents 1.7% increase from the same period last year.

Duncan R. MacKenzie, CEO of NYSAR, characterized home sales across the state through the third quarter as strong and constrained only by the ongoing decline in the number of homes available for sale. “Given the positive market factors including a healthy economy and stable mortgage rates, we believe sales would have pushed higher had more homes been available to buyers,” MacKenzie says.