It is no longer a seller’s market.  I am not ready to call it a buyer’s market.  But, it is surely leaning that way.  Here we are, in the so-called “season”, and for 2 consecutive months the supply of homes for sale has been 6.1 months.  On a current quarterly to same quarterly comparison 1 year ago, that represents a 40.8% increase.  Sellers and buyers are beginning to take notice.  Whereas, homes had been selling, on average at 94% of “original list price”, it has now widened to 92%.  This has resulted in a marked increase in list price reductions as reported in the MLS, as homes take longer to sell, 82 days vs. 64 days.  It is important to note that on average homes do not go under contract, regardless of market conditions, until the sold to list price ratio is no wider than 96%.  This speaks volumes to the importance of proper pricing for current market conditions.

I anticipate this trend will continue.  Please review the graph below of the number of homes for sale.  Note the marked increase in homes for sale.  813 homes for sale in February, resulting in 35% more homes for sale for the current quarter versus the same quarter 1 year ago.  Compare homes for sale to homes sold. Last month there were only 134 homes sold, almost unchanged from last month and the same quarter 1 year ago.  Think about that.  There are many more homes for sale … 35% more, yet, it did not increase the number of homes sold.   Proper pricing has never been more important than it is today.