Inventory's Still Rising in Most U.S. Markets
The number of homes on the market in the 18 major U.S. metro areas rose 1.2 percent in July from the previous month, and were up 19 percent from a year earlier, according to a report by real estate Web site ZipRealty, based in Emeryville, Calif.
While the inventory is still keeping a lid on prices in most areas, the supply of unsold homes didn't increase as rapidly in July as it has been, says ZipRealty CEO Pat Lashinsky. The biggest increase was 6.1 percent in Seattle, which until now hasn’t been much affected by the housing slowdown. Sellers are reluctant to trim their asking prices, and "buyers are sitting on the sidelines, trying to figure out what's going on," he told The Wall Street Journal. Meanwhile, the Boston metro area showed a decline of 2.8 percent in July. Here’s how inventory is moving in ZipRealty’s 18 key cities:- Baltimore +3.6 percent
- Boston -2.8
- Chicago +1.2
- Dallas -0.1
- Houston +0.7
- Las Vegas +3.0
- Los Angeles +3.0
- Miami +0.2
- Minneapolis -0.2
- Orange County, Calif. +2.0
- Orlando, Fla. +0.8
- Phoenix +0.5
- San Francisco +3.7
- Sacramento, Calif. +3.0
- Seattle +6.1
- San Diego +2.3
- Tampa, Fla. -0.9
- Washington, D.C. +0.1
- All 18 metro areas +1.2
Source: The Wall Street Journal, James R. Hagerty (08/09/2007)