Hope Leitner, Realtor®, CRS

  Headlines are talking about the inventory of new homes and how we’re back at the levels not seen since 2009. And maybe you’re reading that and thinking: oh no, here we go again. That’s because you remember the housing crash of the late 2000s and you’re worried we’re repeating the same mistakes. But before you let fear take hold, remember: headlines are designed to be clickbait. And a lot of the time, they do more to terrify than clarify. That’s because they don’t always give you all the context you need. So, let’s take a step back and look at what the data really says. Why This Isn’t Like 2008 While it’s true the number of new homes on the market has reached its highest level since 2009, that’s not a cause for alarm. Here’s the context that matters most. When the  data  is turned into a graph, it’s clear the amount seen in 2009 wasn’t the peak of oversupply – not even close. That high point came earlier in 2007-2008. If anything, 2009 was when the number of new homes be...

  You may have heard that there are more  brand-new homes  available right now than the norm. Today, about  one in three  homes on the market are newly built. And if you’re wondering what that means for the housing market and for your  own move , here’s what you need to know. Why This Isn’t Like 2008 People remember what happened to the housing market back in  2008 . And one of the factors that contributed to that crash was that there were too many  homes for sale . While only part of the oversupply back then came from builders, the lasting impact is that some people still feel uneasy when they hear new home construction has ramped up. Even though the supply of new homes has grown this year, the data shows there’s no need to worry. Builders aren’t overbuilding, they’re just catching up.  The graph below uses data from the  Census  to  show  the number of new houses built over the last 52 years. Following the crash in 2008,...