Inventory Is Making a Comeback in 2026

If you've been house hunting over the last few years and felt like there was never enough to choose from — you weren't imagining it. Inventory was genuinely scarce, and it made the market feel rushed, stressful, and stacked against buyers at every turn.

That's changing. And for buyers who've been waiting for some breathing room, the setup right now is the best it's been in years.

Inventory Just Hit Its Highest Level Since 2020

According to Realtor.com, the number of homes available for sale in January reached its highest point since 2020. And while we're not fully back to pre-pandemic norms nationally, the trend is clear and it's moving consistently in the right direction.

Here's why that matters more than the raw number:

When inventory is low, buyers have no leverage. They're competing against multiple offers, waiving contingencies, and making decisions faster than they're comfortable with — because if they hesitate, someone else takes the home. That was the reality from 2020 through most of 2023.

When inventory grows, that dynamic shifts. Buyers get time to think. They have options to compare. They can negotiate. The market stops feeling like a sprint and starts feeling like an actual process.

More inventory doesn't fix everything — but it fundamentally changes how buying feels on the ground.

A Growing Number of Markets Are Back to Normal

The inventory recovery isn't happening at the same pace everywhere — but it's happening in more places than most buyers realize.

About a year ago, only 41 of the 200 largest metros in the country were back to normal inventory levels according to ResiClub Co-Founder Lance Lambert. By the end of last year, that number had jumped to nearly 90 metros — almost half of the largest markets in the country returning to typical supply levels in roughly 12 months.

That's a significant shift in a short period of time. And it's not done yet.

Where This Is Headed — And Why It Matters 

Looking ahead, forecasts project inventory could rise another 10% this year. If that plays out, even more markets will cross back into normal territory — and nationally, we could be looking at inventory levels comparable to 2017–2019 by late this year.

As Realtor.com Senior Economic Research Analyst Hannah Jones puts it, housing market conditions are gradually rebalancing after several years of extreme seller advantage — and buyers are beginning to see more options and modest negotiating power as inventory improves.

That rebalancing is real. And it's continuing.

What This Means for Buyers in Southern California

Let's bring this local — because Southern California has its own inventory story that's worth understanding.

The Inland Empire, including Rancho Cucamonga, has seen some of the more meaningful inventory improvements in the region. New construction has added supply, and more existing homeowners are listing as life circumstances evolve. For first-time buyers who've been priced out of coastal LA, that combination of more inventory and relatively better affordability makes the Inland Empire the most realistic entry point in the market right now.

In Pasadena and LA County, inventory improvement has been more measured — the structural constraints of limited land and high demand mean this market won't swing dramatically in buyers' favor anytime soon. But even here, buyers are finding more options than they had in 2022, and sellers are more willing to negotiate than they were during the peak frenzy years.

The bottom line for SoCal buyers: you have more choices than you did a year ago. In some pockets, significantly more. And with more choices comes the ability to be more deliberate — less panic, more strategy.

If You've Been Waiting for Breathing Room, This Is It

The buyers who struggled most over the last few years weren't making bad decisions — they were operating in a market that gave them almost no margin for error. Too little inventory. Too much competition. Too little time to think.

That environment has shifted. Not perfectly, not everywhere equally — but meaningfully. And the buyers who recognize that shift early are the ones who get to take advantage of it before the next wave of demand catches up and tightens conditions again.

More inventory means more opportunity. But opportunity doesn't last forever.

Inventory is up. Competition has eased in many markets. And buyers have more negotiating power than they've had in years. That's the setup right now — and it's the strongest opening first-time and move-up buyers have seen since before the pandemic.

If you want to know specifically what inventory looks like in your target area right now — how many homes are available, how long they're sitting, and where the real opportunities are — let's have that conversation.

The market is finally starting to work with buyers again. Let's make sure you're positioned to take advantage of it.