By Diana Olick | CNBC
KEY POINTS
— Sales of newly built homes jumped to the highest level in 14 years in August, but builders’ supply dropped to just 3.3 months’ worth at the current sales pace.
— While the pandemic created huge demand from buyers, it did just the opposite for potential sellers. About 400,000 fewer homes have been listed for sale since the pandemic began, according to realtor.com.
Exceptional demand for new and existing homes, brought on by the stay-at-home culture of the coronavirus pandemic, has the housing market severely depleted.
Sales of newly built homes jumped to the highest level in 14 years in August, but builders’ supply dropped to just 3.3 months’ worth at the current sales pace. A six-month supply is considered a balanced market. Supply was at 5.5 months in August 2019, according to the U.S. Census.
