Photo: AFP
If you’re shopping for a home, the world of real estate may now be friendlier territory than it’s been for years.
“We’ve shifted from a ‘sellers’ market’ and we’re definitely getting close to a ‘buyers’ market,’” declared Realtor Caralee Gurney.
Until recently, a tight supply of homes has squeezed prices up, and squeezed shoppers looking for a house.
But Gurney says that has changed.
The National Association of Realtors’ 2025 Housing Affordability and Supply report says Texas is one of the states where a blitz of construction has helped the number of homes on the market catch up with demand.
Now, instead of shoppers scrambling to outbid each other on a limited supply of homes, the number of available homes has increased to the point that the pressure is on homeowners trying to sell.
“We’ve had such a long haul of houses going up, and up, and up, in value,” Gurney said. “And now people are a little bit afraid and we’ve got a lot of people putting their houses on the market.”
Gurney says her metric is six months. If all the homes now on the market are likely to sell in less than six months, she considers it a sellers’ market. If it would take longer, that’s a buyers' market. “And we’re right between five and six months now,” she explained. “We’re right on the edge of it being equal, or shifting towards the buyers.”
A major variable remains interest rates, as the Federal Reserve contemplates potential rate cuts later this year. But Gurney suspects the market is poised to move, notwithstanding uncertain times.
“Even with talk about interest rates, people are still buying. We just have a surplus of houses that we haven’t had in a long time and buying is starting to be more viable for people. And that’s important.”