Inventory Increases Putting Pressure on Sellers

With inventory increasing across the nation, sellers are feeling some pressure.

In Greater Boston and New Hampshire’s Seacoast region, the combined number of active single-family and condominium listings increased by 30.2 percent on a year-over-year basis in June according to a new analysis by Realtor.com economists.

Additionally, new single-family and condominium listings of both property types increased by 3.3 percent.

Elsewhere in New England, Greater Hartford saw a steadier increase as active listings increased by 17.3 percent while new listings increased by 9.3 percent. In the Providence, Rhode Island metro active listings were up 29.5 percent and new listings were up 3.8 percent.

“This year’s market is a study in contrasts,” Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com, said in a statement. “Buyers are seeing more choices than they’ve had in years, but many sellers, anchored by peak price expectations and upheld by strong equity positions, are deciding to step back if they don’t get their number. Looking forward, this dynamic will affect whether we tip from a balanced to buyer’s market, and if so, how quickly that happens.”

With inventory increasing, sellers are feeling some pressure as buyers have more options. Nationwide in May, delistings rose 47 percent from a year ago and on a year-to-date basis are outpacing inventory gains.

Price cuts are also becoming more common. In June, 20.7 percent of listings across the united states saw price reductions, the highest share for any June since at least 2016 and the sixth consecutive month of price cuts.

The share of all home listings that had a price cut in Boston and the Seacoast increased by 2.5 percentage points on a year-over-year basis in May. Hartford saw a similar increase of 1.8 percent and Providence saw a 2.7 percent bump.

In Rockingham County, the median single-family sale price jumped from $600,000 in May 2024 to $650,000 in May 2025, the most recent data available, while the number of single-family sales held nearly steady, falling from 191 to 188 according to The Warren Group, publisher of The Registry Review.

In Strafford County, the other New Hampshire county included in the larger Boston region in Realtor.com’s analysis, the median sale price rose from $460,000 to $477,500 on the same basis, while the number of single-family sales fell from 78 to 68.