This month I want to talk about listings, or rather, the lack of listings. The blue line represents “new listings” and the purple line shows “total listings.” You can see at the end of last year the spread between the two lines was widening. This (usually) means a slowing real estate market. This is because there are fewer new listings coming on the market, and you see them trending roughly in the same direction. As the gap widens, that means there are properties coming on the market, not being purchased, and creating a tale to two cities.
It was the best of times: the well appointed, properly priced properties get purchased very quickly (within a few weeks) and those sellers have a great overall experience.
It was the worst of times: the not well appointed and over priced properties end up sitting, and that is how the gap happens. Those sellers have a negative overall experience.
Normally, we also see a more significant trend line up in inventory this time of year. It is called the “summer selling season” for a reason. This year, while trending ever so slightly up, this is NOT what we normally see in this season. So buyer demand is back and in full swing, but the sellers haven’t caught on yet so that inventory isn’t making its way back on the market. This is a key factor to pay attention to as we move through the rest of summer.