There's definitely some good names in here. What I would say is that the cost of any trade is much higher these days. Fewer tradesmen means they get a TON of business and have raised prices accordingly. Because you said you bought a new house, it's worth noting for any future project of yours. Get lots of quotes and get them before you need the work done because it can take a while for good tradesmen to find time to quote a job!

Congrats on the new house by the way. You made it through the slugfest :)

1. January is typically the slow season (Spring is right around the corner)
2. Inventory is 1/3rd what is typically is in a pre-covid January
3. People are still paying over asking price, waiving inspections, and breezing through closing in under 30 days.
4. Interest rates are much higher (for whatever reason, people don't talk about the MASSIVE affect that interest rates have on mortgages versus the principal loan amount)

Homes are becoming slightly easier for wealthy individuals but we are still incredibly far-off from a normal market where young people can actually afford to purchase their first homes.

The average interest rate on a 30yr fixed loan is around 6.5% versus 3.9% a year ago meaning that your monthly payment on a $200k loan is over $320 more than it was a year ago! I hear so many new homebuyers getting excited about the prospect of lowering prices but the reason the prices are steadying is because of much higher interest rates.