It's Friday desk clearing time for this blogger. "More homes are popping up for sale in the Triangle, and more of them are sitting on the market longer, according to a recent market analysis. 'The days of just putting a sign in the yard and selling it really quickly, those are behind us,' said real estate agent Jason Kogok. 'Our sellers have to take the time to improve their properties, get it market ready.' The market analysis shows inventory is up 44%. Kogok has been selling homes in the Triangle area for more than 20 years. He calls the current state of the market 'normal.' 'It just doesn't feel normal because of what we just came out of,' he said. 'During COVID, we had what I call artificially-low interest rates. It made all these people who never thought about buying all of a sudden become buyers.'"

"Broward County's residential real estate market continued to lose steam in May, with total home sales falling nearly 18% year-over-year as high mortgage rates and strict financing rules weighed on buyer demand, according to the Miami Association of Realtors. The condo market, once the darling of South Florida investors and retirees, showed signs of price compression. The median condo price dipped 2.5% year-over-year. Statewide, condo prices fared worse, dropping 6.1% year-over-year. The limited availability of Federal Housing Administration (FHA) financing continues to choke off potential first-time and low- to moderate-income buyers in the condo market. Just 21 of the 2,397 condominium buildings across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties are approved for FHA loans -- less than 1% of the total."

"Adding to the challenge, Florida requires a 25% down payment for condos under limited review rules without sufficient reserves -- more than double the 10% required in other states. Despite weaker demand, inventory is on the rise. Total active listings in Broward County increased 35.9% to 17,959 homes in May from 13,219 a year ago. The months' supply of inventory in Broward is now at 5.9 months for single-family homes -- considered a balanced market -- and 12.5 months for condos, which suggests a shift to a buyer's market."

"'The Denver metro real estate market at midyear 2025 is a study in recalibration,' said Amanda Snitker, chair of DMAR’s Market Trends Committee. 'Buyers and sellers who began the year operating on outdated assumptions — expecting lower interest rates, surging competition or guaranteed appreciation — are now confronting a market that demands flexibility and realism,' she added. At month's end, the report said, inventory of homes on the market remained over 14,000, the highest level since 2011. Detached homes priced over $2 million are now reaching an equivalent of six months of inventory, DMAR said. The month saw luxury condos and attached homes priced from $1.5 million and $1.99 million climb well into buyer’s market territory, to over 14.33 months of inventory."

"In Southern California, home sale cancellations have risen sharply, with one in six transactions falling apart in May. According to Redfin, an online brokerage, 2,261 home sales were canceled in May, marking the second consecutive month of increased cancellation rates compared to the previous year. In April, 16.5% of Southern California home sales fell through, followed by a 15.6% cancellation rate in May, both up from around 15% a year earlier. Tom Pelton, a Coldwell Banker broker in Palm Springs, noted a 'dramatic increase in buyer cancellations' as buyers no longer feel the urgency to purchase immediately. This shift has contributed to a buyer's market, where buyers feel they have more negotiating power and are willing to walk away from deals if sellers do not meet their demands. Nationwide, the trend mirrors Southern California's experience. In April, 14.3% of U.S. home-purchase agreements were canceled, up from 13.5% the previous year."

"Manteca is about to go small in a big way. Builders at Lumina at Machado Ranch are prepping ground on their 827-home project on the southwest corner of Airport Way and Woodward Avenue that includes 87 motor court homes. They are four homes clustered around a common driveway. One of Lumina’s 12 motor court clusters will have only three homes. That doesn’t mean much until you take into account the average lot size. It’s 2,746 square feet. That’s less than half the size of the typical tract lot of 6,000 square feet that’s been around Manteca since the late 1960s. The cost saving would not be as effective if they were traditional lots facing a street. That’s because you are 'stacking' a home behind the ones either bordering or facing the street. It is a different take than the 114 duplexes being built on the northeast corner of Airport Way and Center Street in Manteca or the crowded 'Grey Poupon' housing in the North Main Commons kitty corner from the Kia dealership. The homes are so close it seems you could pass a jar of mustard from the side window of one side yard to another."

"Sales of existing homes in the nine-county Bay Area in May fell 8.2% from the same period last year, according to the association. For condominiums and townhomes, Marin County reported a median price of $745,000 on 47 sales in May. A year earlier, the median was $850,000 on 77 sales. As of May, the Bay Area had nearly three months of unsold inventory, a 53% jump from the same time last year. With more choices on the market, sellers are seeing reduced competition for homes. 'The demand and aggressiveness of buyers is way down,' said Rusty Paap, a San Jose agent with Intero Real Estate Services. 'Even though the number of views online has been consistent with the beginning of the year, buyers’ willingness to pull the trigger and write offers has changed significantly. They feel like, even if they don’t get one house, it’s OK, because another is coming.'"

"Speaking to analysts last month, Lennar co-CEO Jon Jaffe affirmed what other giant homebuilders have been saying all year: This year’s housing market was weaker than they expected. 'All of the markets we operate in experienced some level of softening [this quarter]. Even in our strongest performing markets, buyers needed the assistance of incentives. Incentives will vary across the different markets, but primarily in the form of assistance with mortgage rate buydowns,' Jaffe said. 'The markets that experienced more challenging conditions [for Lennar] during the quarter were the Pacific Northwest markets of Seattle and Portland; the Northern California markets of the Bay Area and Sacramento; the Southwestern markets of Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Colorado; and some Eastern markets such as Raleigh, Atlanta, and Jacksonville.'"

"To attract sidelined buyers, in Q2 2025, Lennar—America’s second-largest homebuilder—spent an average of 13.3% of the final sales price on sales incentives, such as mortgage rate buydowns. At that incentive rate, a home with a $450,000 sticker price would come with nearly $60,000 in incentives. According to John Burns Research and Consulting, that’s the highest incentive level Lennar has offered since 2009. The May figure (119,000 unsold, completed new homes) published last week is the highest level since July 2009 (126,000)."

"Despite a persistent housing shortage in Calgary, condo sales are contracting, giving first-time buyers a respite after a four-year whirlwind. In 2021, Tony Wang moved to Calgary from Saskatoon after accepting a job offer at a multinational agri-tech company. Excited for a new life in the Prairie city, Mr. Wang was eager to begin his real estate journey, and buy his first home. In April, he finally placed a successful offer, $15,000 below listing price, on a loft-style condo whose double-height ceilings and south-facing windows captured Mr. Wang’s heart. There was no bidding war on the 815-square-foot property. Mr. Wang’s experience was not an anomaly. After a record two years, Calgary’s condo market is levelling off. In the first quarter of 2025, 96 per cent of condos sold below asking price, according to data compiled by Wahi."

"Rebecca Chamberlain, a real estate agent and co-founder of Chamberlain Real Estate Group, a Calgary-based brokerage, suggests that the spike in condo listings could be due to out-of-province investors leaving the Calgary market. After a barrage of new purpose-built rental units launched in Calgary last year, vacancy rates in Calgary are rising. As a result, asking rents are trending downwards, affecting the cash flow of investors. 'The Ontario buyer just isn’t used to losing,' Ms. Chamberlain says. 'You have many investors pulling back because they’re not making money. And buyers that have many options.' But prices aren’t yet low enough to drive potential buyers into action, says Calgary realtor Amanda Ku. 'They’re sitting on the fence.'"

"The national median dwelling value was $815,389 in June, down by 16.1% from its January 2022 peak but up by 1.1% since the beginning of this year. Median values in the main centres were unchanged in Auckland and Wellington compared to May, but up slightly for the month in Hamilton 0.3%, Tauranga 0.6%, Christchurch 0.6% and Dunedin 0.2%. Cotality NZ Chief Economist Kelvin Davidson said June's figures emphasised the current variability of the market. 'In particular, the abundance of listings on the market means most buyers aren't in a rush and can be quite tough when it comes to price negotiations,' he said. 'The subdued labour market remains an important factor too. After all, it's not only the direct job losses that are problematic, but a reduction in security for those who have kept their jobs will also be weighing on the property market. Of course, problems for some are opportunities for others and a soft market is providing plenty of scope for first home buyers.'"