Number of homes for sale drop in October

The number of homes for sale dropped for the fifth consecutive month in October, reaching the lowest level in more than four years, according to the Wall Street Journal’s blog.

The 2.12 million homes listed for sale in October showed a 3.5 percent decrease from September and a 21 percent decrease from one year ago, according to data compiled by Realtor.com.

The Realtor.com figures include sale listings from more than 900 multiple-listing services across the country. These figures do not include all homes for sale, including those that are “for sale by owner” and other properties that aren’t marketed through multiple-listing services.

The National Association of Realtors also reported a decline in the number of homes on the market. At the end of October, total housing inventory fell 2.2 percent to 3.33 million homes, the lowest level of the year.

For the numbers by market, click here.