Buyers in Wilmington, Del., have to offer over asking
.jpg)
A number of inland housing markets are seeing fiercer competition while coastal markets cool off, according to an analysis by Redfin.
Redfin found that Wilmington, Del., Philadelphia, and Atlanta lead a handful of metro areas where supply is shrinking. These housing markets are also seeing homes go under contract within days and for above-list prices.
In the analysis, the top 25 metro areas with populations of at least 500,000 people were ranked based on declines in inventory as well as on increases in the share of homes going under contract within two weeks of their market debut and in the share of homes selling for more than their list price.
Redfin based the analysis on data for the four weeks ending Oct. 14 and compared it with the same period a year earlier.
"Competition in Wilmington has become fierce and often buyers have to offer over asking and compete against three to six other offers," said Claryssa McEnany, a local Redfin agent. "I'm working with several buyers moving to the area from New Jersey who have expressed that they want to escape the higher property taxes that they can no longer fully deduct."
Redfin contrasted those metros with markets like Seattle, San Jose, and Portland, where inventory has been increasing by double digits and the shares of homes going under contract quickly are shrinking.
The analysis noted that homes in the metro areas that are heating up are considerably less expensive than the hot coastal markets as well as the national median price of about $300,000. Except for Atlanta and Philadelphia, all of the heating-up metro areas are smaller, with populations under 2 million.
Redfin said certain metros such as Wilmington are still deep in seller's market territory.
"Too many sellers are staying put," McEnany said. "Buyers are motivated and want to move now but there just aren't enough homes available."
