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Many U.S. Cities Tip Toward Buyers for the First Time in Years

Among the metropolitan areas that are becoming less competitive are Los Angeles, Dallas and Nashville

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View over the rooftops toward Los Angeles

Pixabay
View over the rooftops toward Los Angeles
Pixabay

Home buyers in Los Angeles County, once one of the nation’s most competitive housing markets, are now gaining the upper hand.

The city ranked No. 6 in the nation for top buyer’s markets in the U.S., according to new data analysis from realtor.com on Tuesday, which looked at areas in the U.S. with rapidly expanding inventory and flat price growth.

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Los Angeles, along with previously white-hot housing markets Dallas and Nashville, have all seen a flood of new listings, with the amount of available inventory spiking by around 23% to 25% compared to a year ago. That means less competition, more homes to choose from and the possibility that a buyer could successfully bid below the asking price.

“The U.S. housing market has largely favored sellers over the last several years as a result of the record-breaking low inventory and red-hot demand that led to intense competition and fast-rising home prices. However, we’re now seeing some metros buck this trend,” said Danielle Hale, realtor.com’s chief economist.

What’s behind the shift to a buyers’ market?

In Los Angeles, slowed economic momentum and runaway price growth have turned off would-be house hunters. Likewise, in Dallas and Nashville, home price growth “has reached unsustainable levels,” according to the report, which did not break out a specific luxury market data.

To find the top 10 buyer-friendly metro areas, realtor.com looked at places where new home listings are accumulating significantly faster than homes are selling.

The most dramatic example of that was New York’s upstate capital Albany (along with its neighboring cities Schenectady and Troy), which ranked No. 1 on the list. There’s now over six months worth of housing stock available in the Albany area, an increase of 31% compared to a year ago.

Albany was followed by Greater Chicago and San Antonio, Texas, which ranked second and third, respectively.

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“The mismatch between what’s available and what buyers want has led to lukewarm demand and lackluster sales,” Ms. Hale said in the report. “As inventory continues to grow in these markets, buyers will see more options, and should ultimately gain more bargaining power.”

Mansion Global is owned by Dow Jones. Both Dow Jones and realtor.com are owned by News Corp.