The number of homes for sale in the U.S. hit a two-year high in October, according to a report from Realtor.com Thursday.
Active listings increased 33.5% since October 2021 to the highest level since 2020, with a 2.8% increase over October 2020 inventory. Of the U.S.’s 50 largest metro areas that were included in the report, 42 markets had annual increases in inventory, with Phoenix; Raleigh, North Carolina; and Nashville, Tennessee, leading with gains of 173.9%, 167.4% and 145%, respectively.
In a blow to buyers who’ve waited for the booming housing market to cool, many aren’t able to take advantage of the high inventory, with listing prices still on the rise—the median listing price rose 13.3% year over year—along with climbing mortgage rates.
“Home shoppers are looking at a monthly mortgage payment that is roughly $1,000 higher than at this time last year, and incomes are rising but not by that much. Combined with asking prices that are still climbing at a double-digit yearly pace, the average American has taken a huge hit to their home-buying power,” Danielle Hale, chief economist for Realtor.com, wrote in the report.
Homes spent a median of 51 days on the market in October, up six days year over year, and despite total listing inventory being higher than the past two years, new listings declined 15.9%. Pending listings were also down a significant 30%.
Realtor.com also reported that 60.7% of their listings views in the third quarter came from users located outside of the listing’s metro area, up from last year’s 52.1%. Prospective buyers looking outside of their market are likely doing so in search of more affordable listing prices, with buyers located in the Northeast and the West most likely to search for homes in different markets.
“For buyers with the flexibility, relocating to a lower-priced market could help offset higher mortgage costs,” Ms. Hale wrote. “There’s also a takeaway for sellers in these areas – on a well-priced home, you could still see strong interest from these out-of-towners.”
Mansion Global is owned by Dow Jones. Both Dow Jones and Realtor.com are owned by News Corp.