The areas we're considering moving to in Sacramento all have low inventory; the homes we liked and offered on ended up getting multiple bids and we were not chosen, and homes that aren't as appealing just sit. On top of the low inventory, homes seem overpriced. Homes we admired and were in, but on the high end, of our budget two years ago are now unattainable. It's disappointing.

Very low inventory but overpriced listings aren't getting sold. There are two of those on my street currently. I created a thread about one.

I'm not sure about inventory, just can see how the prices go up and up

(I follow a bit..but I hit only to see the listings that intrigue me at least some in the first place. yes, they do go soon))

ETA: we're in Orange County, CA

I agree with the Philadelphia assessment--low inventory of the more typical things that people want in every price range. Odd properties or very large expensive ones will sit. I don't know that it's driving the prices up as much as it does in some markets. I know some people who want specific things and they will not buy just anything, if they miss one that meets the criteria, they wait for another one. Rentals are particularly tight, and the current typical renter in CC seems to have very high criteria, the property has to check every box, and for some reason a lot of renters think that the realtor says inventory is low just because they want a quick commission, so they wait, and someone else takes the apartment.

Very low inventory here. I just spoke to a realtor today who told she's never seen anything like it, and she's been in the business for 30 years. At the lower price points there is less than 30 days worth of inventory. Looking at all inventory there is less than 7 weeks of inventory. Not even during the run up to the housing bust were things this crazy.

You'd think prices would be rising rapidly. They're solid, but not skyrocketing. At least not around here.

I'm in the suburbs of STL/Midwest and things are nuts here. Homes priced under 400k (with some updates) in sought after school districts go under contract within 24 hours. Others take 2 to 3 days... Higher priced homes tend to sit longer. But where the middle class seems to shop, those homes are selling quickly here.

A friend of mine just bought a home under 200k in a good school district and her agent told her she had to make an offer the day of the showing if she wanted a CHANCE at the home.

My other friend just put her house on the market and had 5 offers on open house. Home went for over asking. My guess around 200k.

Suburban NJ here. Market is moving fast for teardowns and the subsequent new builds. Existing properties that are tired but not so cheap for that they trade for scrap things linger if not priced aggressively. But that middle condition home has always been the toughest sell in our area - I guess everyone wants something new. Overall I'd say we are still 10% or more off the '07 peak, but 10% or so from the trough.

It seems like everything is moving quickly on my street. An aggressively priced flip took a few months to sell, but the flipper subdivided the property and the lot sold fast. A giant new house is now going up on it. Two houses in great shape sold fast (one was mine). A moldy, empty foreclosure sold the fastest of all. Go figure.

Prices in my area rose 22% in one year, (Philadelphia) supposedly. I know that we have surpassed the bubble prices by quite a bit, but our bubble was not as big, I don't think. My house appraised for more three years after purchase with one bathroom in the basement and a big hole where the two upstairs bathrooms were than it did intact at the time of purchase. (Mild post bubble slump at the time of purchase.)

you're right:) edited my post

North Sound (WA)

Homes priced under 300k sell instantly. Inventory is down 1%. Prices are up 15% and this is not in Seattle which sees a different kind of crazy.,

In my immediate area builders are building spec homes - 1400 sq ft 2 car garage small no-view lots for 340k. These are selling. The higher priced "custom" retirement / vacation homes take a long time to sell and see a number of price reductions.

We bought the inlaws a 55+ cottage in town last year for 150k. The first ones to sell this year were 220k (bit larger) and 205k (bit smaller). Crazy.

No idea of the available inventory here, but our next door neighbors were under contract in less than 2 weeks at asking price, and are now past inspection.

Maryland suburbs of DC, outside the Beltway.

North Central Ohio, inventory is very low. Houses for the middle class (about 2,000-2,500 square feet priced about 250,000-300,000 in move-in-ready condition) sell instantly. houses with first floor masters move especially fast. There are quite a few smaller homes that have sat on the market for a while. Likewise for the high end homes. Anything over 500,000 will take a long time to sell.

Boise, Id has low inventory also. I have been doing the same search of my daughters school district since I moved here in 2014 (3 car garage, less than 550K). Just out of curiosity. In 2014, I would get 30+ results. During the winter of 2017, I hit a low of 12. I am currently coming up with 11 listings during peak selling season. As I walk around there are pending signs on homes that were under contract before ever hitting a searchable site. I talk to neighbors and everyone seems reluctant to list their house, because they don't think they will find anything to buy.

Oakland CA - 2016: 9.1% price appreciation from prior year.

Zillow can be inaccurate but they're pretty decent at guesstimating our area's price appreciation, plus they give useful $/sq. ft. data along with the quintessential rent vs buy numbers:

" Zillow predicts OaklandCA
will rise 2.5% within the next year. The median list price per square foot in Oakland is $463, which is
lower than the San Francisco Metro average of $497. "

Movoto has some more stats for our city. For those unfamiliar with the San Francisco Bay Area, Oakland is one of the larger geographic cities. It's 78 sq. miles, compared to SF's 49 sq. mi. Berkeley is 17 sq. mi.:

Inventory is up 2% from last year, currently 317 houses for sale

Fewer distressed properties, a good sign

Average days on market: 16

=======

For well-maintained properties, or those that have been updated with features buyers are looking for, serious bidding wars are common in the SF Bay Area, and (pretty much ever since I moved here in 1969) always have been.

Toronto's red hot market has dropped sharply for May and June, with monthly sales down 50% from a year ago and prices down more than 12% since April '17. The average sale dropped from C$920,000 (including condos) to a smidgen above C$800,000 following the implementation of a dozen provincial measures, including a punitive 15% tax on non-residents, designed to "cool" the market. It's not so much the measures, but the perception that something was going to happen that affected the market.

My main business is originating and managing a portfolio of equity second-fourth mortgages. Take 20% off a home's value and there goes the investor's margin of safety should the deal go south. Fingers crossed. Funding at a near standstill.

Is the end of the "speculation economy" nigh?

Is the end of the "speculation economy" nigh?

I don't know, but it will be interesting to see how much crazier it can get.

Sales history for a particularly unpleasant little house in the area where I was looking before I gave up. I turned it down at $135K, which was the asking price when it sold for 102K. The new listing is as of this week:

Oh, and nothing has been done to the house between the 10/14 listing and the current one.

Inventory in the 800K bracket inside the Beltway is way down; 2 mio and up outside the Beltway gives you a fair amount of choices.