US homes are selling more quickly as supplies dwindle, according to a new survey by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), which reported that the median time a home was listed for sale on the market fell by almost 30% to 69 days in July, compared to a year earlier.

NAR said that one-third of the houses bought in July had been on the market for less than a month, while one in five had been listed for at least six months. The data includes short sales that typically take three months or longer to sell.

Excluding short sales, the median time on the market for traditional sellers was just six to seven weeks.

‘As inventory has tightened homes have been selling more quickly’, said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun. ‘A notable shortening of time on the market began this spring and this has created a general balance between home buyers and sellers in much of the country.’