October’s numbers are in, and they show a year-over-year decline in sales and inventory. Year-over-year trends are interesting to look at because they avoid the seasonal trends that month-over-month numbers can show. Sales generally tend to slow down during the fall/winter season and start to pick up again in the spring. However, 2020 was an unusual year; the fall/winter season was full steam ahead, and we were still doing deals while I was visiting my folks for Christmas. Following such an unusual year, it’s not surprising that year-over-year sales and inventory have declined. This holiday season is looking more normal. Comparing October to September shows only a small dip in closed sales and inventory, with a slight increase in pending sales.

We are starting to see homes sit on the market a bit longer, and price reductions are more common. This doesn’t mean the market is going down; asking prices were just too high to begin with. In a market where prices increased by leaps and bounds, it was common for sellers to throw out big numbers—and it worked for over a year. However, like the parent of the proverbial kid asking for another cookie from the cookie jar, the market has finally said, “No.” Low inventory is going to keep the real estate market a seller’s market, and the relaxing of international travel restrictions should start to bring foreign money back into the picture. If you have any questions, give us a call at 702.605.7482 today.