Housing Inventory Increases, Listing Prices Fall

Posted on by Listify Me

By Nick Timiraos

Memo to sellers: you’ve got more competition this spring. Price those homes accordingly.

Nationally, the inventory of unsold homes on multiple-listing services increased by 0.6% in February from one month prior. Over the past year, inventory is up by 13%, according to Move Inc. The data covers all single-family homes, condominiums, and town houses listed on nearly all multiple-listing services across the country.

For the month of February, listings increased in 107 markets versus January, and they declined or stayed flat in 39.

Cities with the largest monthly declines in unsold homes listed for sale in February:

  • Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (-12.5%)
  • Riverside, Calif. (-8.7%)
  • Tulsa, Okla. (-6.1%)

Cities with the largest monthly increases in unsold homes listed for sale in February:

  • San Francisco (6.3%)
  • San Jose, Calif. (5.5%)
  • Boulder, Colo. (5.2%)

Inventories usually increase in February as more people test the market ahead of the busy spring home-shopping season. Over the past 27 years, the average increase in February has been 3.4%, according to research firm Zelman Associates.

For the year, only seven of the 146 markets have posted a decline in home listings, including Orlando, Fla., and Jersey City, N.J. The number of homes available for sale in Reno, Nev., is 32% higher than year-ago levels, while Las Vegas and Naples, Fla., had nearly 23% more homes for sale in February than at the same time last year.

Unsurprisingly, the increase in inventory means that more homes are staying on the market longer.  The median number of days that homes were listed for sale in February, at 164 days, represents a 2.5% increase from January and a 29% increase from one year ago.

Meanwhile, average listing prices continue to fall, a sign that home prices are still falling across the country. Those listing prices were essentially unchanged from year ago but they were down 0.5% from the previous month, with big declines in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (-8.6%), Honolulu (-5%), and Sacramento, Calif. (-2.5%).

Click here for a breakdown by 30 major markets.

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