Chief Economist's Predictions for 2018 Housing Market

Zillow's Chief Economist Svenja Gudell predicts that the housing inventory shortage will drive the market in 2018, particularly for first-time homebuyers.

In 2017, the number of new homes built each year is still well below historical norms, concentrated in more affluent areas. According to Zillow, this will change in 2018 as builders will respond to the demand of more first-time homebuyers entering the market by increasing construction of new, entry-level homes.

There are 12 percent fewer homes to choose from nationwide than there were a year ago. And the homes that are available are not accessible across the market: As of September 2017, more than half (51 percent) of U.S. homes for sale were in the top one-third of home values – largely out of reach for typical younger, first-time, millennial buyers.

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