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Inventory Is Higher, But Low vs. Pre-COVID Years

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by Dave Fratello

For a couple of months recently, while more and more new listings were coming out, the pace of new escrows was just about matching. 

We've had weeks with 8, 10, 12 or more new listings, but somehow, buyers were snapping up available homes fast enough to keep inventory pretty level. 

To be specific, when inventory hit 93 listings in mid-May, we took note of the steep rise in listings over the first months of the year, and the fact that this made for higher inventory than we had seen recently. 

Then, over the next 8 weeks, inventory wobbled between 91-98 listings, not greatly building up from that newer, recent high.

Our latest inventory snapshot was taken July 31 with 100 listings on the market in Manhattan Beach. 

This is, again, a new high for recent years. 

But if we rewind to 2020 and the years pre-COVID, 100 listings is kinda low for the end of July.

Our chart shows this graphically.

First, we group 2025 with the years 2021-2024. You see in dark blue how 2025 crept above those years this Spring and has remained higher.

But the second part of our chart shows you the prior years, 2017-2020, with 2025 remaining for comparison.

There, the dark blue for 2025 stays mostly below the prior years, just occasionally swapping places with 2018's inventory totals. 

(Also, while we don't show 2016 data here, that year was also largely higher, like 2017-20.)

Those earlier years, 2016-2019 at least, were pretty normal, with sales totals near or over 400 for the year, and prices rising most of those years. 

We don't have to restate all of our philosophizing from our May post, but the point now is about the same: You can view our higher inventory now as a sign of a healthier, busier market, or you can view climbing inventory as a sign of some kind of a slowdown. 

Wait: There's a third option! It could be both!

That is, after all, what our most recent market update post said:

  • There are more sales this year. 
  • But there wasn't so much activity in July.  

Oh, and don't fixate too much on that total of 100 listings.

By Wednesday afternoon, that was down again to 92. 

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Listings presented above are supplied via the MLS and are brokered by a variety of agents and firms, not Dave Fratello or Edge Real Estate Agency, unless so stated with the listing. Images and links to properties above lead to a full MLS display of information, including home details, lot size, all photos, and listing broker and agent information and contact information.

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