It's still slim pickings for millions of Americans looking to buy a home.
How bad is the housing shortage? America is short more than 5 million homes. That's according to Realtor.com, who says the total number is closer to 5.24 million.
While the shortage is not as pronounced here in Texas compared to other states, young people are finding it more difficult to find an affordable, single-family house.
“People are lining out the door to go buy a starter home, where a starter home now is over 400,000 dollars,” Rogers Healy, a DFW real estate expert, said Monday on Fox's ‘Your World with Neil Cavuto’. “When that starter home demographic is mostly millennials, they’re going to have to go time their move based on what is available. Not necessarily what is affordable.”
Healy notes supply chain disruptions have led to higher prices for building materials like lumber.
In Houston, it's also tough to find affordable homes ($250,000 or less) within the city. Mike Dishberger, CEO of Sandcastle Homes, says if you look for houses in the suburbs, you've got a different challenge.
“The land developers are having difficulty keeping up with the pace and producing enough lots,” Dishberger said. “So, if you talk to developers, they’ll tell you they’re very short of properties and they seem to be taking longer to put together now.”