Many of you are asking about inventory and why is it so low. One way to answer this question is to take a look at an important source of inventory and how it has changed over time. So, here's our quick look at home building dating back to the year 2000.
New single family homes and duplexes
Right now we have more than 1,000 new homes and duplexes being built each year in Dane County, but this is only about 50% of the volume that occurred during the construction peak in the early 2000s. What's not shown here are the numbers for new construction condominiums. Although we don't have historical data for condos, we know the supply of new construction condos is only a tiny fraction of what it used to be.
Supply is tight, and our population is growing.
Clearly our housing supply has been low for several years. At the same time our population has been steadily growing (Dane County is currently the fastest growing region in the state). And we fully expect this trend to continue as more and more people move here for economic, quality of life, and climate-related reasons.
So, how do these trends impact you?
Although all real estate cycles go through peaks and valleys, we believe real estate will be a scarce resource in Dane County for many years to come. Because of this scarcity, we believe homeownership will continue to be one of the best ways around for building wealth.
For those of you who are still striving to become homeowners, we encourage you to keep working on your goal. It may not be an easy goal to achieve, but with the right approach and the right team supporting you, you'll be on the path to homeownership (and building wealth) before you know it.
Of course, it can be helpful to talk to one of our experts about your homeownership aspirations. Please reach out to us anytime with your questions. We're always available for a conversation.
