700K Active Listings: Why Spring 2026 Is the Best Buying Window Since 2020

I've been investing in real estate for over fifteen years, and I can count on one hand the number of times the market has shifted this dramatically in our favor. February 2026 is one of those moments.

As of February 21st, active inventory hit 700,259 listings nationwide. That's not a typo. We haven't seen numbers like this since early 2020, right before everything went sideways.

If you've been sitting on the sidelines waiting for "the right time" to deploy capital, I've got news for you: the right time showed up while you were refreshing Zillow and complaining about rates.

The Inventory Drought Is Officially Over: What 700,000 Active Listings Means for Investors

Let's put this in perspective. At the start of February 2026, we were looking at roughly 637,000 active listings. Three weeks later? We added over 63,000 listings to the market. That's a 10% jump in under a month.

New listings are rebounding to 54,324 per week. That's real deal flow hitting the market every single week.

For those of us who spent 2021 through 2024 fighting over scraps, making offers on properties with 47 other investors, and watching our carefully calculated ARV spreads get destroyed by bidding wars—this is a different game entirely.

More inventory means three things that matter to your bottom line:

1. More deal flow - You're not limited to the same 12 properties everyone else is chasing
2. Less competition per property - Fewer bidding wars means your offers actually get considered
3. Real negotiating leverage - Sellers can't just wait for a better offer when there are alternatives sitting on the market

The inventory drought that defined the post-pandemic market? It's done. And the investors who recognize this shift first will capture the best opportunities.

Breaking Down the Numbers: How February 2026 Compares to Pre-Pandemic Levels

Windermere reported 913,000 active listings at the end of January 2026—the most since January 2020. Think about that. We're finally approaching what used to be considered normal inventory levels.

But here's where it gets interesting. According to ResiClub's analysis, U.S. housing market inventory is up 10% year over year. The growth rate is actually slowing somewhat, which tells me we're approaching stabilization rather than a flood.

This isn't 2008. We're not watching distressed inventory pile up because of systemic failures. This is healthy market normalization after years of artificial scarcity.

The FRED data from the St. Louis Fed confirms what we're seeing on the ground: active listing counts are climbing steadily, not spiking chaotically. That's the kind of inventory increase you can actually work with.

For context, during the worst of the inventory drought in 2022, some markets were running on fumes—maybe 1.5 to 2 months of supply. Investors were making offers sight-unseen just to stay competitive. ARV calculations became almost meaningless when you couldn't predict what a property would sell for three months out.

That era is behind us.

4.2 Months of Supply: Why Balanced Markets Create Better Negotiating Leverage

Here's a number that should get your attention: months of supply is rising toward 4.2 in many markets. That's balanced market territory.

Quick refresher on why this matters:

• Under 4 months = Seller's market (they have the leverage)
• 4-6 months = Balanced market (fair negotiations)
• Over 6 months = Buyer's market (you have the leverage)

At 4.2 months, we're entering the sweet spot where sellers are motivated but not desperate, and buyers can actually negotiate without getting laughed out of the room.

I ran numbers on a duplex in a secondary market last week. Listed at $285,000, needed about $40,000 in work. Two years ago, that property would have had multiple cash offers within 48 hours, probably $10-15K over asking.

My offer? $261,000. Seller countered at $272,000. We settled at $267,500.

That $17,500 discount from list price? That's what 4+ months of supply looks like in practice. It's not a fire sale. But it's real margin that goes directly to your returns.

HousingWire's January analysis nailed it: rising inventory is bringing balance to the 2026 market. Price growth is slowing. Sellers are becoming realistic. And investors who understand how to work a balanced market are finding opportunities that simply didn't exist 18 months ago.

Investor Sentiment Is Shifting: 38% Expect Improving Conditions—Here's Why They're Acting Now

The RCN Capital Investor Sentiment Survey tells an interesting story. 38% of investors expect conditions to improve, while only 19% expect deterioration.

That 2:1 optimism ratio matters. It means experienced investors—people who do this for a living—are seeing what I'm seeing. The fundamentals are shifting in our favor.

But here's the thing about sentiment surveys: they measure what people think, not what people do. And right now, there's a gap between the investors who are acting on improved conditions and those who are still waiting for some mythical perfect moment.

Morgan Stanley's 2026 real estate outlook described it well: "A combination of motivated sellers, increasingly engaged buyers, and greater availability of debt is creating favorable conditions for a rebound in transaction activity and asset values."

The smart money is moving. Transaction activity is picking up. And the investors waiting for rates to drop another 50 basis points or prices to fall another 5% are going to find themselves competing with everyone else who had the same idea.

I talked to a wholesaler in Phoenix last month who closed 11 deals in January. She told me her average days-to-close dropped from 67 days to 41 days compared to the same period last year. Why? Sellers are more motivated, negotiations are faster, and there's actual urgency on both sides of transactions.

That's what improving conditions look like on the ground.

Volume Play vs. Price Play: Why Waiting for 'Perfect Timing' Costs You Deals

Let me be direct about something: Spring 2026 is a quantity play, not just a price play.

What do I mean by that?

Some investors are still operating with a 2022 mindset. They're waiting for prices to crater, for some massive correction that will hand them properties at 40 cents on the dollar. They want the "perfect" entry point.

Meanwhile, they're missing the actual opportunity in front of them.

The opportunity right now isn't about catching a falling knife. It's about deal volume. With 700,000+ active listings and 54,000 new listings hitting the market weekly, you can afford to be selective. You can analyze more properties, make more offers, and close more deals than at any point since 2020.

This is basic math:

• In a constrained market with 10 viable deals per month, you might win 1-2
• In a normalized market with 30 viable deals per month, you might win 5-7
• Same win rate. Triple the closed deals.

NAR's 2026 outlook quoted economists saying conditions will be "much better to achieve that American dream of ownership in 2026—with more inventory choices and mortgage rates falling."

They're talking about regular homebuyers. But the same logic applies to investors. More choices equals more opportunities equals more deals.

I'd rather close six deals at solid margins than wait eighteen months hoping to close one deal at perfect margins. The investor who closed those six deals built relationships, learned markets, generated cash flow, and positioned themselves for whatever comes next.

The investor who waited? They're still waiting.

How to Capture Fresh Inventory Before Your Competition: Using Live Lists and Days-on-Market Filters

Alright, let's talk tactics. Because all this inventory means nothing if you can't find and act on the right properties faster than your competition.

With 54,000+ new listings hitting the market every week, the game has changed. You're not fighting over the same stale inventory anymore. Fresh properties are appearing daily. The question is whether you see them first.

Here's my current workflow:

Step 1: Set up daily inventory alerts

I use JustPropertySearch's Live Lists feature to get real-time notifications when new properties match my criteria. I've got separate lists for different investment strategies—one for BRRRR candidates under $200K, another for potential flips in specific zip codes, a third for small multifamily.

Every morning, I know exactly what came on the market in the last 24 hours. No manual searching. No missed opportunities because I was busy with another project.

Step 2: Filter by days on market

This is where you get an edge. Properties in their first 7 days on market haven't been picked over yet. Sellers are still optimistic. But they're also not yet frustrated.

I specifically filter for:

• 0-3 days: First to see it, first to offer
• 14-30 days: Starting to wonder why it hasn't sold
• 60+ days: Motivated sellers who've run out of patience

Each segment requires different negotiating approaches, but all of them represent opportunity in a normalized market.

Step 3: Move fast on fresh listings

When I see a property that hits my criteria in the first 48 hours, I'm scheduling a showing immediately. Not tomorrow. Today.

In a market with 700,000 active listings, you might think speed doesn't matter as much. You'd be wrong. The best deals still move quickly. The difference now is that "best deals" aren't just properties priced below market—they're properties that fit specific investment criteria perfectly.

Step 4: Track the surge

I review my Live Lists every Friday to see what trends are emerging. Which neighborhoods are getting more inventory? What property types are sellers unloading? Where are days-on-market increasing fastest?

This data tells you where the opportunity is moving. Markets don't shift uniformly. Some areas are hitting 5+ months of supply while others are still tight. You want to deploy capital where leverage is highest.

The Bottom Line

700,000+ active listings isn't just a statistic. It's a fundamental shift in how this market operates.

For the first time since early 2020, investors have real options. Real negotiating power. Real opportunity to build portfolios without overpaying or getting into bidding wars.

Is this the bottom? Probably not. Prices might soften another few percent in some markets. Rates might drop a bit more. But here's what I've learned over fifteen years: the investors who wait for perfect conditions never find them. And they watch other investors build wealth while they wait.

Spring 2026 is shaping up to be the best buying window we've had in years. The inventory is there. The deal flow is real. The question is whether you're going to capture it.

I know what I'm doing. My Live Lists are set up. My capital is ready. And I'm analyzing more deals this month than I did in all of Q4 2024.

The market gave us a gift. Time to unwrap it.