The One Part of the Housing Market That’s Growing As owners remain reluctant to put their properties on the market, developers are rushing to build new homes to meet demand.
Existing homes typically account for about 90 percent of sales, but homeowners who have locked in low-rate mortgages have been reluctant to sell, resulting in limited choices and sky-high prices for prospective buyers. Last year, existing-home sales fell to the lowest level in nearly 30 years, while the median price hit a record high, according to a recent report by the National Association of Realtors.
That spurred a rise in construction, as developers rushed to meet demand and dangled incentives to entice buyers. Sales of new homes jumped 4.2 percent last year from 2022, the Census Bureau reported on Thursday.