Swampscott’s Disappearing Housing Inventory

Many of the headlines about real estate over the last year or so have referred to the decline in inventory. One result of the decline has been bidding wars. Another consequence is that some prospective buyers have become discouraged and stopped looking actively, while some sellers have not listed their house because they fear they will not be able to buy another house.

The chart below shows the month-by-month inventory of SFHs for sale in Swampscott over the last 4 years. Inventory in early 2015 was impacted by the brutal winter (remember the polar vortex?), but it picked up only slightly thereafter. And as we saw in my post Marblehead’s Collapsing Inventory published earlier in the week, there has been no significant pick up in inventory in either of the traditional selling seasons: spring and fall.

Source: MLS, Oliver Reports

Here’s another way to look at the inventory: this chart shows the monthly average number of SFHs for sale each year:

Source: MLS, Oliver Reports

With this startling decline in inventory it is no surprise that the median price of SFHs sold in Swampscott has been rising, as high-lighted in Swampscott Q3 Housing Report: prices break through $500,000 – at last .

If you – or somebody you know – are considering buying or selling a home and have questions about the market and/or current home prices, please contact Andrew Oliver on 617.834.8205 or Kathleen Murphy on 603.498.6817.

If you are looking to buy, we will contact you immediately when a house that meets your needs is available. In this market you need to have somebody looking after your interests.

Are you thinking about selling? Read  Which broker should I choose to sell my house?

Andrew Oliver and Kathleen Murphy are Realtors with Harborside Sotheby’s International Realty. Each Office Is Independently Owned and Operated

@OliverReports