Inventory Piling Up As Buyer Demand Pulls Back

As buyer demand pulls back, inventory is increasing, causing houses for sale to pile up on the market with nowhere to go.

Redfin reported that there are five months of for-sale supply on the market, up from 4.4 months at the same time last year and the most stock available since 2019.

What would typically have been considered good news about inventory increasing is cut down by the fact that buyers aren’t picking up this extra stock. While new listings are up 7.4% YOY, pending sales are down 6%.

The typical home took 57 days to sell, the longest since March 2020, when the pandemic’s onset forced the market to shutter.

High home prices and mortgage rates are keeping many potential buyers locked out of the market.

But demand is picking up as mortgage rates have moderated in the last few weeks. Though refinances are still the star of the show, some buyers want to snap up a new home while borrowing costs are at their lowest point so far in 2025.

“Buyers have been sidelined this year because of high mortgage rates and uncertainty surrounding politics and the economy, but some are starting to come off the fence,” Las Vegas Redfin agent Fernanda Kriese commented.

Notably, uncertainty around the government job market is slowing sales as well. Redfin agents report that in cities with high concentrations of government workers, buyers and sellers are changing their minds as the Trump administration takes the axe to federal employees.

Others are moving to be closer to their offices, anticipating government return-to-office mandates for remote employees.