1 Sign of Possible Spring Chill

Spring is typically real estate's hottest season, but growth in for-sale inventory in February 2019 over the previous year suggests that the market may be "on a cooler footing" than last spring.

That's according to Realtor.com chief economist Danielle Hale, adding that the long-term shortage of affordable homes have kept people out of the market, "Sales have slowed. ... Affordability is a challenge." The share of for-sale homes grew 6 percent in February year-over-year, and the national median home price is up 7.2 percent annually to $294,800. The price increased 2 percent from January 2019.

The big, pricey, tech-fueled cities on the West Coast saw the greatest influx of homes on the market. The nation's most expensive market, Silicon Valley's San Jose, Calif., experienced a 125 percent jump in the metro area in February compared with a year earlier. (The metropolitan area includes the main city and the surrounding suburbs.) The median home price in the metro is a whopping $1,079,800—and that's down 10 percent from the previous year!

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