Real estate agents and home builders are showing concern that the already oversaturated Triad housing market could only get worse after the American Express closure.

Even if only 25 percent of the 1,500 employees losing jobs take the company’s offer to move to its other centers, hundreds of homes could still enter the market.

“We don’t have enough buyers for the houses that we have listed. It means houses will stay on the market longer, and the prices will have to come down to get them to move,” Lori Yager, real-estate agent for Century 21, said.

Things are not much better for home builders. Back in 2007, about 15,000 homes were built in the Triad, but after the recession of 2008, fewer than 5,000 new homes are being built, Gary Hill of Tradition Homes said.

“Most builders are very frugal. They’re really only building if they have a customer,” Hill said.

However, those in the housing market business are holding out hope.

“We’ve seen some activity that is positive, so hopefully we’ll move on and this won’t be such a big hit,” Yager said.

“The Triad has seen this before, and the Triad will bounce back,” Hill said.

American Express will pay moving costs for employees choosing to move to one of their other call centers in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Phoenix, Ariz. and Salt Lake City, Utah.