Is It a Housing Shortage or a Shortage of Buyers?

U.S. housing starts just dropped 15.4% in May, the lowest since May 2020. Multifamily starts collapsed 40% in a single month as builders pulled back to pre-pandemic levels.

Why builders are pulling back

Developers are fleeing because buyers can’t buy. Prices, driven by development, material and labor costs, have outpaced household incomes. Developers stop developing when the final price of the completed project exceeds the target market’s ability to pay.

What it means here

Fewer homes started today means less new inventory a year or two from now. In a market like the Conejo Valley, where new construction is already rare, existing homes will continue to carry most of the supply.

Questions about how this affects your plans to buy or sell? Call me…

Housing starts data from the U.S. Census Bureau, as reported by the National Association of Home Builders.

Originally published in The Trusted Advisor, July 2026.