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With historically low inventory, homes are being bought as soon
as a seller puts it on the market. That lack of supply is also
driving up prices as bidding wars break out with multiple offers
on many homes.
A survey by Clever Real Estate found that of the homeowners who
planned to sell in 2020 or in 2021, 65% delayed selling their
home or decided not to sell altogether because of the pandemic.
The reasons given included financial uncertainty, not wanting
people coming in and out of their homes and not being ready to
meet with a real estate agent.
“I think as we see more areas opening up and people getting back
into their so-called regular daily lives, we will see inventory
increase quite a bit,” said lead researcher Francesca Ortegren.
Geoffrey Hewings, director of the Regional Economics
Applications Laboratory, said there are obstacles that could
prevent a homeowner from putting their house on the market.
“It is a seller’s market, but inventories are so low, a
homeowner may not be able to find a house they like once their
house sells,” Hewings said.
Another factor hurting inventories is the price of lumber, which
has tripled in the past year. Higher material prices translate
into higher prices for new construction.
The high prices are not stopping some from building their dream
house. Ed Neaves with Berkshire Hathaway in Bloomington, said
they have 49 pending new construction homes. Two years ago, his
company built 6 during the entire year.
“Inventories pretty much throughout the state are low, and as
they come to market, they are being snatched up as quick as they
come to market and we are seeing escalating prices,” Illinois
Realtors President Sue Miller said.
The report also found that one in four Americans missed at least
one mortgage or rent payment since the pandemic began. Francesca
said if those homeowners did not make a deal with the bank, it
could more foreclosed homes will hit the market.
“Without any kind of agreement, they’re just skipping payments
because they don’t have the cash or they have to prioritize
other types of debt, those people are at risk potentially for
foreclosure depending on how many payments they have missed,”
she said.
Those who have been making their mortgage payments are
benefiting as home values continue to increase. According to the
National Association of Realtors, homeowners in America
collectively gained $2 trillion in home equity over the past
year alone as home prices rose 16%.
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