Increased supply in some of the hottest markets is giving buyers control
Homebuyers in some the hottest housing markets are in a position to call the shots a bit more as rising inventory increases competition among sellers.
Redfin says that 26.6% of homes listed on the MLS in the markets it operates in the four weeks to September 16 had a price drop of between 1% and 50%.
"After years of strong price growth and intense competition for homes, buyers are taking advantage of the market's easing pressure by being selective about which homes to offer on and how high to bid," said Taylor Marr, Redfin senior economist.
The share of price drops increased by 4.8 percentage points from the same period a year earlier, when 21.7% of homes had a price drop. The year-over-year share of price drops has been rising since late March.
“There are some early signs of a softening market, and the increase in price drops may be another indicator that sellers are going to have trouble getting the prices, and the bidding wars, that they may have just months ago,” added Marr. “Instead, many are finding their homes are sitting on the market without much interest until they start reducing their prices."
The markets that posted the biggest increases in price drops year-over-year were: Las Vegas (+12.3 points to 28.1%), San Jose (+10.7 pts to 25.7%), Seattle (+10.1 pts to 37.1%), and Atlanta (+9.0 pts to 27.9%).
