The “For Sale” sign stands at a home in Miami, Florida on April 16, 2025.
Marco Bello | Reuters
Rising mortgage rates and concerns about the broader economy have led to a weak start to the very important spring housing market.
Sales of homes owned before in March fell 5.9% from February on a seasonally adjusted annual basis, according to the National Association of Realtors. Sales were 2.4% lower than last March.
Sales had fallen in all regions from the month to the month, but fell the hardest in the West, falling more than 9%. That is the most expensive region of the country. However, the West was the only area to increase year-on-year due to strong activity in Rocky Mountain, where employment growth is strong.
The count is based on the closure, so it is likely that contracts will be signed in January and February with average fees for popular 30-year fixed mortgages exceeding 7%. According to Mortgage News Daily, it was not below 7% until February 20th.
“We’ve seen a lot of effort into making this a reality,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist at NAR. “The mobility of housing, which is currently at historic low, shows the troublesome possibility of less economic mobility in society.”
Sales fell despite a sharp increase in the available list. At the end of March, 1.33 million units were on sale, an increase of nearly 20% since March 2024. At the current sales pace, this is equivalent to four months’ supply. The six-month supply is considered a balanced market between buyers and sellers.
More inventory and sales are beginning to slow down. The median price of an existing home sold in March was $403,700. That’s still the record high of the month, but it’s only increased by 2.7% since last March. That annual comparison has been shrinking since December, and is the smallest profit since August.
“In stark contrast to the stock and bond markets, household wealth in residential real estate continues to reach new heights,” Yun said. “According to the Federal Reserve funding flow, the valuation of real estate assets is $52 trillion, so each percentage point increase in home prices is over $500 billion to the household balance sheet.”
First-time buyers accounted for 32% of the market in March. This is the same as last year’s month. Historically, it accounts for around 40%.
All cash sales fell to 26% from 28% the previous year, but investors remained stable at 15% of sales.
