Housing Shortages Abound Here

In many markets, there are just not enough homes for sale to meet buyer demand.

“More than two-thirds of the markets are seeing less inventory now compared to a year ago,” says Jonathan Smoke, realtor.com®’s chief economist. “Tight credit and limited new construction are clearly at play.”

Realtor.com®’s research team scoured the data to find the locales facing the most severe housing crunch. Of the 150 largest markets, realtor.com® pinpointed where inventories of homes are the lowest and where the problem is worsening too (by accounting for the percentage decrease in for-sale homes from 2015 to 2016). Here are the cities that topped its list:

1. Seattle, Wash.

Percentage of housing stock for sale: 0.4%

Decrease in for-sale homes in 2016: 13.4%

2. Eugene, Ore.

Percentage of housing stock for sale: 0.6%

Decrease in for-sale homes in 2016: 27.3%

3. Grand Rapids, Mich.

Percentage of housing stock for sale: 0.7%

Decrease in for-sale homes in 2016: 24.7%

4. Buffalo, N.Y.

Percentage of housing stock for sale: 0.6%

Decrease in for-sale homes in 2016: 15.9%

5. Fort Wayne, Ind.

Percentage of housing stock for sale: 0.8%

Decrease in for-sale homes in 2016: 24.9%

6. Sacramento, Calif.

Percentage of housing stock for sale: 0.6%

Decrease in for-sale homes in 2016: 5.5%

7. Detroit, Mich.

Percentage of housing stock for sale: 1%

Decrease in for-sale homes in 2016: 25.7%

Source: “Sold Out: These 10 U.S. Cities Have the Biggest Housing Shortages,” realtor.com® (Jan. 16, 2017)

Source: NAR – Real Estate News
Housing Shortages Abound Here

Image Credit: Don Hankins via Flickr / CC BY 2.0 (edited)

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20 reviews on

Tom Sikes

2023-05-30

Todd is an excellent agent. He made every effort to meet our unique situation (settling an estate while living out of the state) He kept us up to date at every step of the process. I highly recommend Todd.

Jason Trent

2023-04-19

I really like this site!

Liz Kruse

2021-10-14

Marisa was great. She sent me emails as soon as new properties came on the market, and was always eager to meet me for tours. She took all the stress out of scheduling and paperwork, and was always available to talk to me when I was feeling anxious about my purchase. We wrote 6 offers, because of the crazy market, but she stayed optimistic and wasn’t deterred by rejections, or sales being canceled due to inspections. I felt like she truly had my best interest heart every step of the way.

Abigail Fine

2021-08-28

I would highly recommend Tawnya. She helped me navigate the worst market Eugene has ever seen for buyers—and I'm a first-time buyer, no less, which made the process even more strenuous. Tawnya was warm, attentive, and energetic throughout the whole process. What I appreciate most is that her legal training makes her extremely knowledgeable, and she is a down-to-earth person who shares her expertise without coming across as pushy. If the property has visible problems, she will never hesitate to say "don't pursue this place, there are red flags here"—she is extremely honest and transparent. She wants to help the buyer find the best place for their needs, however complicated that process might be, and she is very patient.

Martha Dyer

2021-07-17

Marissa Fox helped us get into the house of our dreams by listening to us and supporting us through the process. She is a fun and lovely person to go through the process with and never made me feel bad for asking questions. It's a crazy time to buy a house, and she made it seem easy.

Hannah Porton

2021-06-04

Tawnya Madsen, of Eugene's Alternative Realtors, is hands-down the best realtor imaginable. She surpassed all of our expectations. She is more than competent (has a law degree along with all her other expertise), prompt, professional, comfortable to work with, and most of all, we had complete faith that she was making the right calls every step of the way!

Jason Vartanian

2021-05-19

My wife and I have worked with Tawnya through three separate transactions (two purchases and one sale), and we would highly recommend her to anyone. Tawnya is knowledgeable, attentive to detail, patient, responsive, and friendly. We always looked forward to our meetings with her, and we are absolutely thrilled with the new house she helped us purchase. And we couldn't have asked for a smoother or more stress-free transaction when she helped us sell our starter home. Thank you, Tawnya!

Samantha Sanders

2021-05-12

The absolute best realtors I’ve ever worked with. Tawnya is an absolute joy and amazing to work with. I cannot recommend them enough.

Chris Gibson

2021-05-05

Housing Shortages Abound Here

Housing Shortages Abound Here

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