'Record number' of homes for sale in Sweden

The number of houses and apartments for sale in Sweden is nearing record highs, according to a Swedish real estate listing service.

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Ever since June, the number of real estate listings in Sweden has been above normal, figures from online listing service Bovision.

The number of detached homes for sale has been 26 percent higher than during 2010, while the number of tenant-owner apartments (bostadsrätter) on the market has been 20 percent higher compared to last year.

As 2011 comes to a close, there are still an extraordinarily high number of homes for sale.

“The record high inventory doesn't seem to be letting up,” Bovision CEO Ulf Magnusson said in a statement.

“The record inventory combined with reports of lower prices has us seeing more of a buyers market for homes compared to what we're used to.”

While inventories of detached homes and apartments are somewhat lower in December compared to November, in line with regular trends, there are 55 percent more houses and 44 percent more apartments for sale today compared to figures from December 2010, according to Bovision's figures.

And the large number of listings isn't due to the fact that homes are sitting unsold for longer periods of time.

In reality, it's taking less time on average for homeowners to sell their properties. In December 2010, it took an average of 131 days to sell a detached house, compared to only 111 days this year, while flats are selling in 84 days, compared with 88 days in 2010.

Currently, there are 16,198 houses and 12,026 apartments for sale in Sweden.