LACK OF LISTINGS SLOWING DOWN THE HOUSING MARKET
The housing crisis is finally in the rearview mirror as the real estate market moves down the road to a complete recovery . Home values are up . Home sales are up . Distressed sales ( foreclosures and short sales ) have fallen dramatically . This will be the year that the housing market again races forward .
However , there is one thing that may cause the industry to tap the brakes : a lack of housing inventory . While buyer demand looks like it will remain strong throughout the winter , supply is not keeping up . Here are the thoughts of a few industry experts on the subject :
Mark Fleming , PhD . Chief Economist at First American : “ Extremely limited supply is stopping the market from reaching its full potential , counteracting positive increases in market fundamentals , such as employment and wages .”
Jonathan Smoke , Chief Economist at realtor . com : “ Overall , the fundamental trends we have been seeing all year remain solidly in place as we enter the traditionally slower sales season , and pent-up demand remains substantial as buyers seek to get a home under contract while rates remain so low .”
Lawrence Yun , Chief Economist at NAR : “ Healthy labor markets in most of the country should be creating a sustained demand for home purchases . However , there ’ s no question that after peaking in June , sales in a majority of the country have inched backwards because inventory isn ’ t picking up to tame price growth and replace what ’ s being quickly sold .”
" Inventory has been extremely tight all year and is unlikely to improve now that the seasonal decline in listings is about to kick in . Unfortunately , there won ' t be much relief from new home construction , which continues to be grossly inadequate in relation to demand ."
5