Thursday, November 20, 2008

One source of housing inventory is outpacing another

We know Dane County housing starts are decreasing and foreclosures are increasing, but these trends are especially striking when we can see them together on the same graph.

The graph below shows year-to-date totals (January through October) for housing starts and foreclosures over the last five years. Over this 5 year period housing starts have decreased by 71% while foreclosures have increased by 211%. The end result is foreclosures now outpace housing starts by close to a 2 to 1 margin.


These two trends have changed the real estate experience for everyone - buyers, sellers, agents, attorneys, lenders and builders. Expect more change on the horizon as more and more foreclosed homes work their way through the legal process and onto the open market.

For more information, you'll find these DaneCountyMarket.com updates useful:

Thanks to Dominic Collar from MTD Marketing Services of Wisconsin for allowing us to share his housing start data. For more information, you can reach Dominic at 920/993-8435.

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