Housing Inventory Continues to Dwindle As Prices Advance

In a normal world, buyer demand would have most likely eased up in October, but it does not appear to be headed that way. Homebuyer demand continues on and, according to Forbes, there are 400,000 less homes on the market compared to last year. For the week ending September 19, there were 39% less homes on the market compared to the year before. In response, home prices are increasing at double last year’s pace and are selling much faster. Forbes warns that if mortgage rates remain low, there will be a continued influx of buyers but even less sellers.

Historically low mortgage rates combined with the growing trend of working remotely has created the perfect storm propelling buyers to engage in bidding wars and make above asking price offers. Here are some stats and facts from realtor.com that tell the story. Homes on the market lag far behind last year's available inventory. "Since mid-March (the beginning of the COVID pandemic), a total of 2.91 million unique properties have been put on the market for sale. This is approximately 390,000 fewer homes than the 3.30 million listed during the same period last year.”

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