An issue that has been plaguing the housing market since it started on its path to recovery after the bubble burst has been its tight inventory. This lack of inventory leads to less selection for buyers and has been a major barrier for many potential homebuyers who are looking to buy their first homes.
Housingwire.com reports that the most recent existing-home sales report from the National Association of Realtors shows the total housing inventory at the end of December dropped 12.3 percent to 1.79 million existing homes available for sale, which is 3.8 percent lower than a year prior. Additionally, unsold inventory is at a 3.9-month supply at the current sales pace, which is down from 5.1 months in November. This 3.9-month supply is the lowest since January 2005 when it dropped to 3.6 months.
This year is not likely going to be the year this tight supply completely rights itself, but we may start to see the beginnings of a turnaround with a higher inventory that will be available in 2016 as compared to 2015.
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