Is U.S. housing supply increasing after years of scarcity? Twenty-two of the 50 largest U.S. metro areas have more active listings on the market than they did prior to the pandemic, according to the most recent Realtor.com Monthly Housing Report. With a 100% rise in available homes above the 2017–2019 average, Denver has experienced the biggest recovery, followed by Austin (+69%) and Seattle (+60.9%).
“For-sale housing inventory in Denver has doubled compared with the pre-pandemic norm, providing a clear sign of a housing market realignment,” said Danielle Hale, Chief Economist at Realtor.com. “In some areas, affordability concerns have also slowed buyer demand, giving the market room to breathe and contributing to gains in homes for sale. In general, we’re seeing strong inventory rebounds in metros that have built more in the last 6 years. This milestone underscores both the importance of enabling housing construction and the growing divide in housing conditions across regions, where some markets are rapidly normalizing and others remain stuck in low-supply dynamics.”
Popular Metros See Large Gains
The most notable improvement in active inventory compared to pre-pandemic levels has been observed in these metro areas. The list of cities, which are mostly in the West and South, may not be shocking, but it is noteworthy how much each metro area grew. Over the years, active inventory increased by more than 50% in six metro areas, with the majority of this expansion occurring in the most recent year.
| Rank | Metro | Change in Active Inventory vs. Pre-Pandemic |
| 1 | Denver | +100.0 % |
| 2 | Austin, Texas | +69.0 % |
| 3 | Seattle, WA | +60.9 % |
| 4 | Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas | +55.5 % |
| 5 | San Antonio | +58.3 % |
| 6 | San Francisco | +53.5 % |
| 7 | Nashville, TN | +44.4 % |
| 8 | Orlando, FL | +44.2 % |
| 9 | Las Vegas | +28.6 % |
| 10 | Tucson, AZ | +23.0 % |
The markets most likely to exhibit inventory gains are those that constructed the most new homes both during and after the pandemic. In addition to seeing fast growth in building, cities like Austin, Denver, and Nashville are now dealing with lengthier selling periods, which adds to the increase in inventory. According to Realtor.com’s data, building activity after 2019 and inventory recovery are strongly positively correlated.
In 2025, properties are sitting longer in many Western and Southern urban areas, and buyers are becoming more hesitant. Active inventory is growing as a result of the longer duration on the market. This implies a cooling of demand and a leveling or even softening of prices in certain markets. Listings in Nashville now last up to 19 days longer on average than they did a year ago. The average increase in Miami and Orlando is 13 days.
With 4.6 months of supply in May—still below the 6-month figure that often characterizes a buyer’s market—the U.S. housing market isn’t technically in a buyer’s market, but things are moving in the right direction. Today’s buyers have more options, more time to decide, and sellers who are more eager to haggle over terms and price.
This changing environment is consistent with Realtor.com’s 2025 projection, which called for the most evenly distributed market since 2016. However, the current transformation is taking place against a backdrop of chronic underbuilding, with a shortfall of about 4 million homes nationally, in contrast to previous buyer’s markets that followed overbuilding. Local trends are therefore more important than ever for both buyers and sellers, as some metro areas may tilt into buyer’s territory while others will stay tight.
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