Zillow reports that nationally there were 1.04 million homes available on the market in February, the most for this time of year since 2020.
The increase in inventory is helping to lower home prices in certain markets, thus helping home buyers make up ground on affordability.
Nationally, annual home price growth has slowed to an 18-month low of 2.1%, and homes are staying listed longer, Zillow says.
Zillow forecasts that the drop in mortgage rates that came during early March will help entice some fence-sitting homeowners to list their properties.
“Affordability is still a massive challenge for those who have been waiting to buy a home, but the lower rates we’ve seen so far in March are taking the edge off,” says Skylar Olsen, chief economist for Zillow, in a release. “Rate dips tend to energize buyers and sellers both; if they continue or hold, we should see more activity. Economic uncertainty is a counterbalance, one that will be felt in some areas of the country more than others. People tend to shelter in place when the future of their job or industry is uncertain.”
Listings are spending about 23 days on the market before a sale is pending, Zillow reports.
That’s six more days than last year and just four fewer than at this time pre-pandemic — closer to “normal” than at any time since 2020.
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