This article details the results of data released by the National Association of Realtors. Not only does it confirm what many of us already know but Standard and Poor’s states that it could take over three years to clear this inventory. Florida leads the way with over 441,000 with California a distant second at 228,000.

Shadow inventory is a major concern for me in regards to the Maricopa Arizona homes market. Since the robo-signing fiasco of last year, our inventory of available subdivision homes has dropped from 969 in OCT 2010 to just a little over 500 today. Seasonal buying activity is strong and it has actually become difficult to find single level homes in certain subdivisions. The bad news is that the lenders, up to this point, have not been releasing their backlogged inventory and by the time they do most of the “snowbirds” will have migrated back to their homes.

I realize that there is not a lot of common sense involved in the decisions that lenders make but this is “over the top”. My guess is that they may be thinking nationally and that the best time to release these homes will be in the summer. Unfortunately, with our seasonal buyers gone we are going to be faced with a glut of inventory.

It is definitely a Catch 22. If they release too many homes at once it will tank the values. However if they release them too slowly, it will extend the housing market problems for years down the road. Of course, none of us know what the true motivation is behind these decisions and how much money, incentives or political favors are being exchanged.

Why don’t they just put a Realtor in charge of this whole mess and we can get back to normal sooner rather than later?

http://bit.ly/h1JOc9

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