Data from Redfin found that by the end of last month, nearly 70 percent of homes on the market remained unsold for more than a month, HousingWire reports.
New listings shot up by 9.2 percent last month, but if the spring housing demand continues at its current pace, supply will not be able to keep up with demand. Data from the NAR shows that nationwide, the total number of unsold homes rose 5.3 percent in March to 2 million, which is projected to be exhausted in only 4.6 months.
In a survey to find out what’s causing the inventory crunch, RealtyTrac found that more than 7 million homeowners can’t sell because they’re deeply underwater, though the figure is falling as homes experience rising values.
On the new-home front, builders haven’t kept pace either, HousingWire reports. Their current pace is breaking ground on 1.07 million houses, condominiums, and apartments annually, but studies by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing found that the U.S. requires between 1.6 million and 1.9 million new units just to accommodate population growth.
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