![Jill on Money [ Archive]](http://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59efbd48d7bdce7ee2a7d0c4/1510342916024-TI455WZNZ88VUH2XYCA6/JOM+Blue+and+White.png?format=1500w)
A couple of months ago, I noted that the housing market had a problem: there were too few homes for sale. Persistently low inventory means that there are a lot of frustrated would-be buyers out there, spending weekends at open houses. It also has led to home prices continuing to rise at a more than six percent clip from a year ago.
It’s been more than five years since housing prices bottomed out. Since then, the economy has strengthened, the labor market has improved and mortgage rates remain historically low. All of those factors should add up to a robust spring housing season, but that’s not what’s going on. Instead, realtors and builders are lamenting the low number of homes for sale.
Bidding wars, no contingencies and frustrated buyers...the housing market is heating up! Existing home sales have jumped to their highest level since early 2007 and new home sale activity has been equally as brisk. Additionally, nearly a decade after the housing market peaked, foreclosure filings, which includes default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions, dropped to the lowest level since November 2005, according to ATTOM Data Solutions.
