COVID-era hot spot flooded with listings after pandemic buying boom grinds to a halt

The Music City party is over for home sellers.Nashville has quietly become the second-toughest place in America to sell a house, according to a new Redfin report, trailing only Miami and beating out three major Texas metros in the process. Sellers now outnumber buyers by a staggering 128.8%, giving house hunters more choices, less competition and serious room to haggle.“Buyers are taking their time these days.There are a significant number of listings on the market, people are taking their time and waiting for the right one,” Aaron Glicken, a Redfin Principal agent based in Nashville, said in the report. “Buyers feel like they need to get a significant deal.

They’re submitting low offers on homes that are already priced well for the market.”New listings in the metro have jumped 9.4%, dwarfing the national increase of just 0.1%.Homes are also lingering on the market far longer, a median of 78 days compared to 49 days nationwide.Nationally, sellers outnumbered buyers by an estimated 48.5% in June, meaning the whole country has tilted toward buyers to some degree.

But Nashville’s imbalance is nearly triple that national figure.Redfin agent Kristin Sanchez pointed to a mix of forces reshaping the local market.“This market is giving homeowners confidence they’ll actually have somewhere to move after selling.Many homeowners with super-low interest rates have delayed life changes for several years.

Now, those life events can’t be postponed any longer, so they’re entering the market despite higher mortgage rates,” Sanchez said.“Some sellers recognize that the frenzied appreciation of 2021 and 2022 has leveled off.

They’re choosing to sell while home values remain relatively stable rather than trying to perfectly time the market.”Not everyone is timing it well, though.“Many sellers are learning the hard way.They’re turning down early offers because buyers are coming in low, only to realize down the road they’re still getting low offer...