While there is no correct answer to the question, the reality is that given the market conditions, people are seeing few homes before buying than in the past. According to a report by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), homebuyers who successfully purchased a home in 2021 viewed a median of only eight properties before completing their transaction.
NAR has tracked the number of homes viewed before purchasing since 1987, and eight is the lowest number on record. Right after the Great Recession, between 2009 and 2011, buyers viewed a median of 12 homes before purchasing, as inventory was plentiful. From 2004 to 2006, during the housing boom years, even though homes were moving at a rapid pace, buyers typically looked at nine homes.
According to NAR, low inventory is partly to blame for the homebuyers looking at fewer homes than before. In December, housing inventory dropped below 1 million units for the first time on record and at the current sales pace there is only a 1.8 month’s supply of homes. Besides inventory constraints, NAR feels that technology has also contributed to the decrease in the number of homes buyers view before completing their purchase.
Both of those reasons make sense to me. I am putting more effort in than ever just to get showings scheduled for my clients as inventory is so low. Further, I sold more homes from video showings in 2021 than in my entire career before last year.