After several months of tight inventory, more people put their homes on the market last month, especially those with homes worth the most.
Inventory among homes in the top third price tier increased 82 percent in October – while inventory in the bottom tier rose by 68 percent, according to a new report from Zillow.
Related: 5 Reasons the Luxury Real Estate Market Is Booming
“Depending on their finances, it’s likely that individual buyers in the same market might be having completely different home buying experiences,” Zillow chief economist Stan Humphries said in a statement. “Even as conditions improve for buyers overall, it remains tough… for first time home buyers and lower-income buyers, especially compared to their more well-off contemporaries.
Overall, median U.S. home values increased 6.4 percent in October to $177,000, compared to the previous year, although the pace of gains has slowed, another sign that the housing market is starting to cool off.
That’s a good sign, since most economists agreed that the double-digit price gains that some areas of the country saw last year were unsustainable.
Related: Signs Point to Positive Spring Housing Season
Inventory gains at the upper end of housing, mean fewer options for millennials and middle-class buyers, who are dealing with rents that continue to increase. Rents were up 3.5 percent in October, compared to the previous year, Zillow reports.
While the gap is narrowing, buying a home is cheaper than renting in 38 of the country’s largest metro areas, costing an average of 38 percent less, according to Trulia.
Top Reads from The Fiscal Times:
