Houston Just Hit Record Inventory: What Buyers Should Know

By Sonit Seth

As a real estate professional and entrepreneur, Sonit provides his clients with comprehensive real estate services, including buying and selling properties.

Hi, I’m Sonit Seth with the Seth Edge Group, your edge in real estate. The most recent numbers are out for the Houston real estate market, and there’s a lot worth unpacking this month, especially if you’ve been sitting on the sidelines waiting for the “right” time to buy.

At a glance, total property sales came in essentially flat year over year, while active listings and pending sales both ticked up slightly. Steady on the surface. But underneath those headline numbers are a few takeaways that matter a lot more for your next move.

Luxury is having a moment. Sales of homes over $1 million were up more than 9% compared to a year ago, and this is the third straight month the luxury segment has posted a significant gain. That’s not a one-off blip. That’s a trend, and it tells you where a real pocket of momentum is right now.

Buyers have more choices than ever. Houston had about 62,000 active listings across all property types in July, and single-family inventory hit 40,750, the highest level HAR has ever recorded. And those figures don’t even include all the new construction options that are available but may not be listed. So if it’s felt like there’s more to choose from lately, you’re right, there genuinely is. For buyers, that kind of selection is real bargaining power.

Now, about those rates. A lot of people have told me they’ll buy when rates come down, so I pulled the first-week-of-August mortgage rate going back four years to see how much waiting has actually paid off. Back in 2022, the 30-year fixed sat below 5%. But in 2023, 2024, 2025, and again in 2026, it’s hovered right around 6.7% the entire time, between roughly 6.6% and 6.9% each year, according to Freddie Mac. Four years, basically flat, and there’s no sign of a significant drop on the horizon.

So here’s my honest advice. If you’re waiting on mortgage rates to fall, stop focusing on that and start focusing on the deals you can actually get right now, because there’s so much inventory out there to work with. The math on waiting hasn’t rewarded anyone for four years running, but the selection available today is real.

If you’d like to chat about these numbers in more detail, or talk through some of the specific deals that are out there, feel free to reach out. Call or text me at 713-252-3670 or email me at sonit@sethedge.com, and I’d be happy to help. Whatever your next move looks like, I’ll help you find your edge in this market.