Buyers gain leverage as listings pile up and prices slip

Become unstoppable

“People who keep their word to others are successful. People who keep their word to themselves are unstoppable.” 

That’s from Sharran Srivatsaa. I haven’t been able to shake it since I came across it earlier this week.

I wanted to share it with you too. It’s so powerful.

This weekend, just sit with it for a moment and take it in.

If you want to become unstoppable, this is what you need to do.

- James

Homes for sale are piling up as buyers back off 

Buyers have more homes to choose from than they’ve had in years. Active listings nationwide rose 6.7% from a year ago, up from last week’s 6.3% gain and the fastest growth since February.

In fact, September inventory now sits just 9.1% below pre-pandemic levels, the smallest gap since the pandemic began, according to Realtor.com’s latest market update. 

Here are the other key takeaways:

• Inventory is growing because buyers are sitting out, not because more sellers are listing. New listings actually fell 4.1% year over year, as higher rates kept more homeowners locked into their existing mortgages.

• Mortgage rates hit a near three-year high. Rates climbed to 7.28% as 10-year Treasury yields hovered near multi-decade highs, and they’re now nearly a full point above where they were a year ago.

• Asking prices keep sliding. The median listing price dropped 2.4% from a year ago, its 38th straight week of annual declines, and is down 1.9% year to date.

• Price cuts are the most common they’ve been in nearly four years. About 20.8% of listings had a price reduction in September, the highest share since October 2022.

• Homes are still selling a day faster than last year. Sellers pricing to sell are keeping things moving, though homes are selling faster in the West and slower in the Midwest and Northeast.

My take

Falling home prices should be good news for buyers, but rates, not prices, are driving this market. Asking prices are down about 2% from last year, yet mortgage rates are nearly a full point higher, erasing those savings and then some. Those higher rates are keeping buyers on the sidelines, homeowners locked in, and inventory growing. What happens next largely depends on where rates go. If they fall, sidelined buyers could return and absorb some of that inventory. If they keep climbing, expect more price cuts and longer waits for sellers.

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The share of starter homes shrinks as starter-prices climb to $340k 

Starter homes made up just 36.2% of active listings in August 2026, down from 38.1% in August 2019. Over the same period, the price threshold for a starter home jumped 30.8%, from about $260,000 to $340,000.

Had the 2019 share held, buyers would have more than 21,000 additional starter-priced homes to choose from today, according to Realtor.com. 

Here’s what to know about this trend:

• Most of the drop came during the pandemic. Starter share fell to 36.3% by August 2022 and has held flat since.

• Condos and townhomes are filling the gap. They now make up 27.1% of starter inventory, up from 18.0% in 2019.

• Rust Belt metros lead in starter share. Toledo, OH (42.1%), St. Louis, MO (40.7%), and Detroit, MI (39.8%) have the highest shares of starter-priced listings in 2026.

• Starter homes are scattered, not clustered. Of roughly 8,300 ZIP codes analyzed, only 18.3% are starter-dominant, and 61.4% are mixed, meaning most starter-priced homes sit in neighborhoods with a blend of price points.

• The Midwest offers both affordability and choice. Kansas City (37.7%) and St. Louis (40.7%) pair above-average starter shares with an above-average number of starter-dominant ZIP codes, giving buyers options across many neighborhoods.

My take

The most striking finding isn’t the national decline in starter homes, but what’s happened in the Sunbelt. In markets like Columbia, SC, and Cape Coral, FL, home prices have cooled since 2022, yet starter inventory hasn’t recovered. That suggests falling prices alone won’t restore the entry-level market. The Midwest tells a different story. Toledo, which topped the starter-home rankings in both 2019 and 2026, saw more modest price growth and preserved more of its starter inventory. The lesson? When it comes to starter homes, the markets that never boomed are the ones that held on.

Top markets homebuyers are moving to

Nearly one in five house hunters (18.7%) were looking to relocate to a different metro area in the second quarter of 2026, according to Redfin. That’s up slightly from 18.1% a year earlier and the highest second-quarter share since Redfin’s records began in 2021.

A bigger share doesn’t necessarily mean more people are moving, though. Homebuying overall is still sluggish, so the pool of buyers is smaller, and the actual number of relocators is likely still below 2021–2022 levels.

Affordability is a big part of the draw. Nine of the top 10 destination metros are in the Sun Belt, where homes typically cost far less than in the coastal cities people are leaving.

Here are the top 10 metros and states house hunters are moving to:

My take

Even though fewer people are likely looking to move than during the pandemic boom, affordability continues to drive where buyers want to relocate. A typical home in Las Vegas costs about half what it does in Los Angeles. And New Yorkers aren’t primarily looking at Miami. Their top destination is Philadelphia, where homes cost roughly a third as much. Many buyers aren’t looking to reinvent their lives. They’re looking for a more affordable version of the life they already have, preferably without leaving their friends, family, or jobs too far behind.

Schematics

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• Four overlooked ways to finance a home for less

• Luxury senior housing is growing right now

Foundation Plans

Advice from James to win the day

Balancing your life and work is especially tough as an agent; our work doesn’t follow a typical clock-in-clock-out approach. This can be especially tough if you’re building a family or have other responsibilities outside work. 

Speaking for myself, I don’t live to work. I work to build the life that I want, with the freedom and financial security to enjoy it. 

Today, I want to share some rules of thumb and habits that have helped me. I’m not perfect, but I’ve come a long way since I started in the business. I hope they help you too.   

1. Protect small windows of your personal life – Even at the peak of a busy real estate career, you can create protected blocks—often 90 minutes to two hours—where your personal life gets your full attention. This means carving out time for children, friends, relatives, or yourself. During these windows, the phone stays closed, but the priority is being mentally present, not just physically in the room. This “quality micro-time” compounds massively over the years.

2. Be present when you’re off the clock –  High-producing agents can’t turn their phones off at 6:00 p.m., but they can control how they show up. That means responding when necessary, but demonstrating to those around you that they matter as much as your business.

3. Use weekends strategically – Weekends aren’t days off in this business—they’re flexible days. You can blend family and personal time with focused work blocks, like showings, calls, or two-hour recap sessions where you update all your sellers. This structure keeps clients informed, maintains trust, and still leaves the majority of the weekend for rest, family, and other personal obligations.

4. Personal communication builds trust and wins repeat business – While many agents delegate client updates, taking time to write personalized weekend recap emails sets you apart. Sellers want to know what’s happening with their listing, and they want to hear it from you—not from a template or assistant. This habit strengthens relationships, increases referrals, and helps you retain listings long-term.

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Just in Case

Keep the latest industry data in your back pocket with today’s mortgage rates:

“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.” — Steve Jobs

Each day is a gift – a chance to live the life you want. Ruthlessly focus on your goals. Don’t let your past or the fear of being judged distract or paralyze you. Choose to live with an integrity that you can be proud of.

Have a wonderful weekend, and I’ll see you back here next Friday!

- James