#housing-inventory-decline

#housing-inventory-decline

The bipartisan Starter Homes Act would loosen local mandates on minimum lot sizes, parking and design requirements, and require cities to allow duplexes, triplexes, and accessory dwelling units in more neighborhoods.

The January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires destroyed about 12,000 homes and caused more than $50 billion in damage, with most losses tied to the Eaton and Palisades fires, which were contained by Jan. 31, 2025.

The demand for faster information has driven an evolution in consumer behavior. Buyers are researching multiple communities and submitting inquiries to several builders in rapid succession.

Realtor Todd Luong of REMAX DFW Associates in Frisco said his recent experience reflects meaningful improvement for buyers, even if affordability remains strained. Here in the Dallas real estate market that I serve, affordability remains a challenge, he says. However, there is a significant amount of data showing that buyer conditions have improved over the past year and that buyers are gaining affordability ground. This should eventually increase housing demand to some degree as we head into the busy spring buying season.

Mortgage rates are near 6%, which means it costs builders less to do a buy-down, and because they sell homes as a commodity, they're trying their best to manage this cycle and their profit margins. This means selling a new home in recent years has been more of a calculation on how much builder credit they can and need to give.