Buyers wanting more living space and hoping to take advantage of low mortgage rates have been snapping up homes during the pandemic, pushing sale prices to record highs and resorting to increasingly creative ways to get a leg up with sellers swamped with offers. This fiercely competitive housing market, made more intense by investors and second-home buyers, has also made it increasingly common to bid above the list price and even forego the home inspection in the past year. After soaring to a 14-year high last year, the monthly volume of home sales is now dropping off despite the best efforts of house hunters. The inventory of homes on the market hasn’t kept pace with demand, and these shortages will likely continue in the short-term as the scarcity and mounting cost of materials like lumber hampers the construction of new homes, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
