Richard Smith, Chairman and CEO of Realogy Holdings Corp., the parent company of Century 21 Real Estate LLC, said inventory is “doing what it should be doing,” as the recovery continues and we go through the best time of year for home sales.
“The first quarter is never the quarter to judge inventory because it’s always the worst quarter – it’s not our season. The best season for housing is the second and third quarter when the most activity occurs,” said Smith in a May 10 interview with Lou Dobbs on Fox Business News. “That said, inventory is up about 9 percent since January so it’s doing what it should be doing. And it’s coming back into market as new inventory—builders are building so that’s adding new inventory. Underwater equity homes now are suddenly no longer underwater in their equity – or at least a high percentage of them. They’re coming back into the market as new inventory and just the seasonal swing of business is coming back into the market as inventory. So inventory will correct. There’s more than enough demand to meet that inventory need and price is reacting to that.”
Bidding Wars Are Back
The CENTURY 21 spring selling survey revealed there are plenty of serious buyers in the market who are actively making offers, but due to low inventory and many houses receiving multiple offers, bidding wars are becoming more common.
According to the survey:
– 33 percent of those searching for a home say they have been at it for over a year, while 67 percent have been searching for up to a year.
