by Calculated Risk on 3/28/2024 02:43:00 PM

What this means: On a weekly basis, Realtor.com reports the year-over-year change in active inventory and new listings. On a monthly basis, they report total inventory. For February, Realtor.com reported inventory was up 14.8% YoY, but still down almost 40% compared to February 2019. 

 Now - on a weekly basis - inventory is up 25.5% YoY.

Realtor.com has monthly and weekly data on the existing home market. Here is their weekly report: Weekly Housing Trends View—Data Week Ending March 23, 2024

• Active inventory increased, with for-sale homes 25.5% above year ago levels.

For an 20th straight week, active listings registered above prior year level, which means that today’s home shoppers are able to consider more options for existing homes for sale. However, the number of homes on the market is still down nearly 40% compared to what was typical in 2017 to 2019 and the gain in inventory, particularly in the more affordable under $350,000 price category, was primarily focused in the South last month. Nonetheless, in the first few weeks of March, inventory growth has also accelerated in the Midwest and West, while inventory in the Northeast remains similar to the previous year.

• New listings–a measure of sellers putting homes up for sale–were up this week, by 14.9% from one year ago.

For the 22nd consecutive week, newly listed homes have surpassed levels from a year ago. While the annual growth rate was slower than the 17.8% recorded a week earlier, it remains among the fastest increase rates in new listings since June 2021. This indicates a surge in fresh options for buyers as we approach the spring homebuying season. However, it’s worth noting that the inventory base for this growth remains relatively small.

Here is a graph of the year-over-year change in inventory according to realtor.com. 

Inventory was up year-over-year for the 20th consecutive week following 20 consecutive weeks with a YoY decrease in inventory.  

Inventory is still historically very low.

Although new listings remain below typical pre-pandemic levels, new listings are now up YoY for the 22nd consecutive week.