May continued April's year-over-year upswing, with for-sale inventory dropping 20.07 percent, median list prices jumping 3.17 percent to $194,900, and median age of for-sale inventory falling 9.78 percent compared to a year ago.

Data Point Percent Change, May 2012 vs. May 2011
Number of Listings -20.07%
Median List Price 3.17%
Median Age of Inventory -9.78%

As of May, national for-sale inventory stood at 1.88 million units, roughly 60 percent of a September 2007 inventory peak of 3.1 million units (2007 was the first year Realtor.com tracked this data nationally).

Despite a slight 1.96 percent month-over-month increase in national inventory -- expected because listings usually swell during the springtime buying season -- all but two of the 146 metros Realtor.com tracks had fewer homes for sale than a year ago.

Some of those markets hit hardest in the housing crisis -- Atlanta and metros in Florida, Arizona and California -- are showing some consistent, month-by-month turnaround. In May, Phoenix, Tampa-St. Petersburg, Fla., and Atlanta were among the top 10 metros Realtor.com tracks with year-over-year percentage drops in for-sale inventory.

This month, six of the metros in the top 10 that saw the greatest reduction in inventories from a year ago were in California, including three in the San Francisco Bay Area: Oakland at No. 1 (56.6 percent fewer listings than a year ago); San Jose at No. 6 (40.88 percent fewer listings); and San Francisco at No. 10 (38.9 percent fewer listings).

Top 10 metros for greatest year-over-year reduction in for-sale inventory, May 2012

Rank Metro For-sale inventory, percent change, May 2012 vs. May 2011
1 Oakland, Calif. -56.60%
2 Fresno, Calif. -48.76%
3 Bakersfield, Calif. -48.59%
4 Phoenix-Mesa, Ariz. -44.71%
5 Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash. -42.65%
6 San Jose, Calif. -40.80%
7 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla. -39.76%
8 Stockton-Lodi, Calif. -39.25%
9 Atlanta -39.19%
10 San Francisco -38.90%

Source: Realtor.com

Editor's note: Data collected and analyzed by Realtor.com through May 2012. Includes single-family homes, condos, townhomes and co-ops. The national housing market continues to stabilize, according to data compiled by Realtor.com for 146 U.S. metros through May 2012

http://www.inman.com/news/2012/06/13/top-10-metros-shrinking-inventory