Money "sitting on the sidelines"

The real estate sphere/media/banks continually mention how there is a lot of money "sitting on the sidelines ", often as a justification for positive forecasts in real estate going forward.

While it is true that savings have increased for higher income earners (particularly the top quintile), I don't see a lot of evidence that they are considering/planning to deploy the capital into real estate in the near term. It has significantly underperformed other markets in the past 2 years, and most people don't foresee much growth in the near term, especially with population growth stagnating and rents dropping.

I'm curious what those on here are hearing from their circles? Is there a lot of interest in investing, first-time homebuying or upgrading in the next year or so from those you know? What about people planning to sell (and if so, is it investments or something else)?