Trulia's report finds that supply increased in several markets, while affordability was on the decline overall in the third quarter of 2018.
The total share of for-sale homes in the nation was the highest for the entire year thus far in the third quarter, and had the smallest annual decline in more than three years, 2.5 percent. Trulia also finds that starter homes are most scarce on the market, accounting for only 20.9 percent of the quarter's available inventory, though that is up on an annual basis. Mid-level and trade-up home inventory also increased, whereas the share of available premium homes dropped.
Housing affordability has deteriorated since last year, affecting all housing segments but felt most acutely among starter home buyers. Nationally, a family looking for an entry level U.S. home should expect to spend a quarter of their income (25.6 percent) on a mortgage. And in the some of the country’s biggest markets, it’s especially bad. In San Francisco and San Jose, Calif. starter home buyers will need to spend over 100 percent of their income to afford an entry level home.