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New listings rose 13% from a year earlier, their biggest increase in nearly three years, but home prices and mortgage rates remain elevated.
The median U.S. monthly housing payment was $2,686 during the four weeks ending March 10, just $30 shy of last October’s all-time high. That’s due to a combination of still-high mortgage rates and rising prices. While mortgage rates came down slightly this past week after increasing for four straight weeks, they’re still near 7%, and sale prices are up 5% year over year nationwide. On a local level, prices increased in all 50 of the most populous U.S. metros, the first time that has happened since July 2022.
High housing costs are still pricing out some would-be homebuyers, with pending sales down 6% from a year earlier. But more house hunters are wading into the market; mortgage-purchase applications rose for the second week in a row. That’s partly because supply is steadily improving, giving buyers who can afford elevated prices and rates more homes to choose from. New listings are up 13%, the biggest annual increase in nearly three years, and the total number of homes for sale is up 3%, the biggest increase in nine months.
“Mortgage rates are likely to stay high a little longer than expected, with the latest inflation report essentially eliminating any chance of the Fed cutting interest rates before June,” said Redfin Economic Research Lead Chen Zhao. “Buyers who can afford to may want to get serious about their home search now, as housing costs are unlikely to fall anytime soon. The uptick in listings should be another motivator for buyers: There’s more to choose from, and improving inventory may bring out more competition from other buyers as we get further into spring. Some buyers have already gotten the memo, with mortgage applications finally increasing after weeks of declines.”
For more on Redfin economists’ takes on the housing market, including how current financial events are impacting mortgage rates, please visit our “From Our Economists” page.
Leading indicators
Indicators of homebuying demand and activity
Value (if applicable)
Recent change
Year-over-year change
Source
Daily average 30-year fixed mortgage rate
6.94% (March 13)
Down from 6.97% a week earlier
Up from 6.75%
Mortgage News Daily
Weekly average 30-year fixed mortgage rate
6.88% (week ending March 7)
Down from 6.94% a week earlier; first decline after 4 weeks of increases
Up from 6.73%
Freddie Mac
Mortgage-purchase applications (seasonally adjusted)
Up 5% from a week earlier (as of week ending March 8); 2nd straight week of increases
Down 11%
Mortgage Bankers Association
Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index (seasonally adjusted)
Up 5% from a month earlier (as of week ending March 10)
Down 10%
Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index, a measure of requests for tours and other homebuying services from Redfin agents
Google searches for “home for sale”
Down 4% from a month earlier (as of March 9)
Down 19%
Google Trends
Touring activity
Up 29% from the start of the year (as of March 10)
At this time last year, it was up 20% from the start of 2023
ShowingTime, a home touring technology company
Key housing-market data
U.S. highlights: Four weeks ending March 10, 2024
Redfin’s national metrics include data from 400+ U.S. metro areas, and is based on homes listed and/or sold during the period. Weekly housing-market data goes back through 2015. Subject to revision.
Four weeks ending March 10, 2024
Year-over-year change
Notes
Median sale price
$371,750
5.1%
Median asking price
$399,850
4.9%
Median monthly mortgage payment
$2,686 at a 6.88% mortgage rate
7.3%
Just $30 shy of all-time high set in October 2023
Pending sales
79,779
-5.8%
New listings
85,122
13%
Biggest increase since June 2021
Active listings
780,779
2.9%
Biggest increase since May 2023
Months of supply
3.5 months
+0.4 pts.
4 to 5 months of supply is considered balanced, with a lower number indicating seller’s market conditions.
Share of homes off market in two weeks
40.2%
Up from 38%
Median days on market
45
-2 days
Share of homes sold above list price
25.1%
Up from 24%
Share of homes with a price drop
5.6%
+1.5 pts.
Average sale-to-list price ratio
98.6%
+0.3 pts.
Metro-level highlights: Four weeks ending March 10, 2024
Redfin’s metro-level data includes the 50 most populous U.S. metros. Select metros may be excluded from time to time to ensure data accuracy.
Metros with biggest year-over-year increases
Metros with biggest year-over-year decreases
Notes
Median sale price
San Jose, CA (16.3%)
Newark, NJ (15.1%)
Boston (14.9%)
West Palm Beach, FL (14.8%)
Fort Lauderdale, FL (13.8%)
n/a
Increased in all metros
Pending sales
Milwaukee (11.5%)
San Francisco (9%)
Cincinnati (8%)
Minneapolis (7.5%)
San Jose, CA (5.8%)
San Antonio, TX (-25.8%)
New York (-15%)
Atlanta (-14.8%)
Houston (-13.9%)
New Brunswick, NJ (-13.8%)
Increased in 12 metros
New listings
San Jose, CA (30.4%)
Phoenix (29.9%)
Las Vegas (27.4%)
Minneapolis (26%)
Jacksonville, FL (24.9%)
New York (-18.4%)
Atlanta (-5.8%)
Newark, NJ (-3.9%)
Chicago (-0.7%)
Virginia Beach, VA (-0.4%)
Philadelphia (-0.2%)
Declined in 6 metros
Refer to our metrics definition page for explanations of all the metrics used in this report.
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This article was originally published by a www.redfin.com . Read the Original article here. .