(https://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/07/cnbc-housing-market-survey-balanced-market.html) is the structural shift nobody's talking about — and it's poison for discount retail. For 18 months, housing scarcity forced middle-income consumers into two choices: hold inventory or spend elsewhere. The "forced savings" from not trading up financed the Walmart/Costco trade-down thesis. But balanced markets mean sellers actually have leverage again.

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