It’s still a sellers’ market, but things are starting to look up for desperate buyers as the housing market normalizes. (iStock)
Buyers shouldn’t break out the bubbly just yet, but things are starting to look up for them in the frothy housing market.
Sellers have had a major advantage over the past few months as prices soared and inventory dwindled. Those trends are beginning to see slight reversals, however, according to Mansion Global.
Housing inventory was still down 25.8 percent in August from a year ago, according to a Realtor.com report. But that’s better than in July, when it was down 33.5 percent.
The median listing price also dropped to $380,000 from July’s record-high $385,000. The August number is up 8.6 percent year-over-year and 20 percent from 2019, less than the corresponding July figures.
Sellers appear to be more inclined to reduce prices than they had been as bidding wars cool down across the country. Listing adjustments were up slightly from August 2020, with 17.3 percent of active listings having seen a price adjustment.
Meanwhile, the rental landscape is looking less friendly. Since the beginning of the year, asking rents for single-family homes have spiked nearly 13 percent, the highest jump in five years.
All of these factors could bring some buyers back to the housing market.
[Mansion Global] — Holden Walter-Warner
