NEWS
Fewer first time buyer homes coming to market in the US, data shows
15-10-2012
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The report, which tracks changes in the number of homes listed for sale on Zillow across the country as of the end of September 2012 and compares inventory changes in the bottom, middle and upper tiers of home prices, found that California has the highest annual rate of inventory reductions across all three housing tiers.
Overall it has seen a decline of 37.5% but the inventory in the bottom tier of homes saw the biggest decline of 42.7%. Lower priced homes in the Fresno metro fell by 59.7%, in Sacramento by 55.4%, in San Francisco by 53.2% and in Modesto by 50.5%.
These homes commonly are purchased by first time buyers and, more recently, investors. Nationally, the bottom price tier has experienced an inventory reduction of 15.3% over the past year.
‘First time buyers are being squeezed out of the market by falling inventory and the rapid influx of investors looking to buy basic homes to rent out to the growing population of people who have recently been foreclosed upon,’ said Stan Humphries, Zillow chief economist. ‘Investors are paying in cash and can close sooner, which is more favourable to banks and homeowners looking to sell,’ he added.
Nationally, inventory rates have dropped by one fifth, some 19.4% across all homes with inventory declining the most in higher priced homes, down 22%.
In the largest 30 metro areas, inventory across all tiers has fallen the most in Sacramento, and San Francisco where it is down 42.4% and it is down 40.7% in San Diego. It has fallen the least in the Cincinnati, down 9.5%, down 10.8% in Portland, Oregon and down 14.5% in St. Louis, Missouri.
