Metro Housing Inventories Surge in March 2007

Daily Real Estate News April 6, 2007 (REALTOR Mag Online)

ZipRealty reports a 6.5-percent surge in for-sale housing inventory in March from the previous month in 18 leading metropolitan areas across the country. The national real estate brokerage compiled the data — which includes single-family homes, condominiums, and town houses — from local MLS’s.
Credit Suisse Group notes that the jump is much higher than the average increase in inventory of 1.7 percent recorded for the February-through-March period over the last two decades. ZipRealty President Patrick Lashinsky says sellers anticipating a summer move and a slower housing market put their homes on the market in March, instead of waiting until April or May.
Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., reported the largest month-to-month inventory gains of 12.8 percent, 12.2 percent, and 9.4 percent, respectively, according to ZipRealty.
Miami — plagued by an oversupply of condominiums — saw its inventory inch up just 1.8 percent in March from February. Its year-over-year gain of 61 percent, however, far surpassed the 35 percent growth rate recorded for the 18 metro areas combined.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, James R. Hagerty (04/05/07)