If you’re a home buyer frustrated by high home prices, what you’re really frustrated by is inventory. The supply of homes for sale has been lower than normal for most of the past decade and reached historically low levels during the pandemic. When there are too few homes for sale and plenty of interested buyers – as there were during the pandemic – home prices get pushed higher. In other words, today’s high home prices are the result of a long-standing lack of available homes for sale. The good news for buyers, though, is that inventory is now improving. In fact, according to the National Association of Realtors’ consumer website, on a typical day in October, there were 29.2 percent more homes actively for sale than there were in October 2023. October also marked the highest level of active inventory since December 2019, with new listings up in every region. The rising number of available homes for sale means buyers can expect improved affordability levels and moderating price increases in the months ahead. (source)
