A new study released today says Greater Hartford is the fourth-best market for real estate buyers in the U.S. because of an increasing inventory.
Greater Hartford ranks fourth behind Philadelphia, Chicago and Baltimore. It’s ranked just ahead of metropolitan New York City/New Jersey, according to the new report by Zillow, a real estate and rental marketplace.
The Greater Hartford Association of Realtors reported last week Hartford area’s 2016 home sales are off to an unusually strong start, with unit sales and prices both rising in January.
Nationwide, home shoppers had 8.6 percent fewer homes to choose from than they did last year, according to the January Zillow Real Estate Market Reports. Housing starts reached a three-month low in January, indicating that newly built homes will not be a significant benefit for buyers, either.
Besides inventory, Zillow looks at price cuts and days on market to help identify whether markets are better for buyers or sellers. According to Zillow’s latest Buyer/Seller analysis, markets that benefit sellers are mostly grouped in the west, where buyers are more likely to face bidding wars. Buyers will find themselves with more bargaining power in the east.
