Houston housing inventory continues decline

The number of Houston homes on the market continues to dwindle, according to a new report, reducing the backlog of available properties and moving the local real estate market closer to balance.

According to data from ZipRealty, there were just over 33,000 Houston listings on the market at the end of November, a 2.6 percent decline from a month ago. However, in order to make sales, most home sellers are still trying to cut their prices to drum up interest, as the data showed that 43.7 percent of listings had their prices reduced as of the start of this month.

The local decline in housing inventory was slower than those seen in other areas. Home listings dropped by 3.8 percent nationwide, and plunged by as much as 10 percent in Boston and 9.5 percent in Austin. Nationwide, the housing inventory is up by 11 percent compared to last year.

However, the local market also has much less ground to make up. While the current 7.7-month inventory of Houston homes, according to data from the Houston Association of Realtors, is higher than the six months seen in a healthy housing market, it is decidedly better than the national level of 10.5 months.