KCRAR/HMLS just release its Market Report for real estate sales in the Kansas City area during June of 2020 and the numbers are atypical for a few reasons.
First, looking at Johnson County, Missouri home sales, we see 86 closed sales compared to 82 in June of 2019. This may look normal but that is coming off a low level of sales of 43 in May of 2020 compared to 76 in May of 2019.
Inventory and Supply numbers for Johnson County, Missouri have been trending downward for years and June 2020's Inventory number of 126 compares to 179 in June 2019, 189 in June 2018, and 192 in June 2017. It is highly irregular to have such low Inventory and Supply numbers in the peak selling periods.
It could be worse, and looking at the entire Kansas City Region as compiled by KCRAR/HMLS shows inventory and supply are even tighter for the region as a whole. The following chart is very illustrative. Note the Historical Inventory by Month chart has now dipped lower than it's been since at least January 2004.
Experts say this inventory tightening is the result of potential sellers not wanting to list their properties or sell them due to the COVID-19 pandemic. I'd say that is a big part of it but it's not the whole story. Anxiety towards the results of the fall presidential election, economic uncertainty due to government lockdowns, and nervousness due to civic unrest in large cities around the country surely also play a role. Rarely acknowledged is also the underlying economics of new residential housing development. As regulations are continuously piled on top of existing regulations, and as fees and costs see ever more incessant increases, the difficulty and risk of bringing new projects to fruition become nearly insurmountable.
There are more buyers than sellers of quality properties in Johnson County, Missouri. It remains a seller's market.