What does January (early) 2026 data tell us about the current market? Essentially that buyer demand is weakening at least at this point. We look at various data points to measure market health.
The new listing to pending ratio tells us what percent of new listings coming on the market get absorbed. It's a leading indicator. For every 100 properties entering the market, if only 76 properties go under contract, we’re adding to existing inventory. So while new listings are down from this point last year, so is demand, as measured by pending listings. And by a greater percentage.

The graph below paints a clearer picture. Active inventory is outpacing properties going under contract (demand)

The inventory table describes what the categories mean and shows greater granularity for the 30 metro cities and 75 zip codes that we tract. The total inventory level in the metro is 4.5, which by definition would favor sellers. When we look at the different cities and zip codes we can see that while there are areas with low inventory favoring sellers, there are a number in the neutral zone, and more than 25% that favor buyers or give buyers control.
Since our selling season is earlier than the rest of the US, by the end of Q1’26 we will have more data to get a better idea of where this year’s market is headed.

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