Dive Brief:

• Big news from Realtor.com: The inventory of for-sale homes is finally starting to grow.

• Chief Economist Jonathan Smoke said Friday that more homes were on the market in February than during February 2014. This is significant, he said, because the fewer properties there are on the market, the higher prices climb and the harder it is for young homebuyers to afford their first homes.

• However, this is some irony to the news: Many of the for-sale homes that are easing the inventory crunch were listed by homeowners who have been encouraged by the higher prices, which were pushed up by the tight supply.

Dive Insight:

Prices will climb more slowly as supply and demand even out, but not in time for the spring selling season, which is already reaping healthy profits for sellers in markets where the number of potential buyers outpaces inventory. Topping the Realtor.com list of the current "hottest" markets in the country are Waco, TX; Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX; Santa Rosa, CA; Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO; and Vallejo-Fairfield, CA.