The housing market is in transition. For years, there's been a shortage of homes for sale and an abundance of buyers. But elevated buyer demand – fueled, in part, by historically low mortgage rates – slowed this spring when mortgage rates increased and caused some buyers to hit pause on their buying plans.
Affordability conditions have become more challenging. That much is true. But, in some other ways, the market's gotten better for buyers. In fact, summer home shoppers may actually be able to benefit from the market's recent changes. How so? Well, for one, options. The inventory of homes for sale is improving. That not only provides buyers with more homes to choose from but also means there will likely be less competition and fewer bidding wars. Time on market has also improved. Buyers will find they have a little more time to make decisions since there are fewer buyers competing for the same homes.
With homes for sale lingering longer on the market, buyers will finally get some relief from the stressful pace of the past few years. Put simply, the housing market is rebalancing but changing conditions don't necessarily mean bad news for buyers.
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