The housing market’s been out of balance for years. With too many interested home buyers and too few homes available to buy, prices moved higher and made it increasingly difficult for Americans to find an affordable home for sale in the areas where they’d most like to live. Fortunately, though, things have gotten better. Inventory levels improved last year and, according to new numbers from The National Association of Realtors’ consumer website, they’re off to a strong start so far this year. In fact, the number of newly listed homes increased 37.5 percent month-over-month in January, driving the number of homes actively for sale 24.6 percent higher than they were last year at the same time. Danielle Hale, the website’s chief economist, says it could be a sign of things to come. “The shift in seller activity could mark a turning point in the high mortgage rate-induced standoff between buyers and sellers,” Hale said. “The uptick is likely due to some residual benefit from fall’s lower mortgage rates, which could fade. But drivers such as the need for families to adapt to life changes and the easing of the lock-in effect, could bring more movement from sellers by year’s end.” (source)
