By the Numbers

While affordability remains a challenge, lower mortgage rates and increases in inventory are giving buyers some wiggle room as they search for their next home.

The slowdown is increasingly tied to hiring confidence and stalled migration — not just sub-3% mortgages, according to Compass Chief Economist Mike Simonsen.

Rates fell to 6.01% this week, the lowest level in more than three years. But homebuying activity remains sluggish even as affordability steadily improves.

The National Association of Home Builders’ monthly sentiment score — which has hovered below 40 since April 2025 — dropped another point this month.

The typical down payment fell 1.5% year-over-year in late 2025 — a shift Redfin economists say may be a sign that buyers are seeking more affordable options.

Cooling inflation gives the housing market an “incremental tailwind.” But economists warn that data released this time of year can be tricky to interpret.

While existing home sales tumbled 4.4% year-over-year in January, improvements in affordability and inventory offer hope for more market activity this spring.

The U.S. household mobility rate fell to 11.2% in 2024, Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies found — and early 2025 data indicates not much has changed.

The latest employment report makes a case for “cautious optimism” ahead of the spring homebuying season — if job and wage growth continue.

A majority of Americans think that people aren’t making enough money to afford homes — and high mortgage rates aren’t helping, according to a Bright MLS survey.

Though mortgage rates aren’t expected to change much in 2026, many prospective buyers are holding out hope for a sudden drop, a Clever Real Estate survey found.

With rates near three-year lows and new listings on the rise, market conditions are relatively decent for home shoppers ahead of the spring homebuying season.

Slight improvements in affordability helped put more people in homes at the end of 2025, with year-over-year gains among the under 35 and 55-64 age groups.

A Redfin report found that the share of buyers paying less than the list price was up last year, and the average discount for those below-ask homes was 7.9%.

Mortgage rates are holding steady, but purchase applications and pending sales are down as economic and political tensions heighten consumer uncertainty.

Following three 25-point cuts in the second half of 2025, the Federal Reserve chose to hold interest rates steady, though housing activity remains “weak.”

Home purchase cancellations hit an all-time high for the month of December, Redfin found, especially in markets where sellers outnumber buyers by a wide margin.

Though recent data offers mixed signals for the spring season, economists believe the year ahead will be “more constructive” for homebuyers.

Trump’s vow to seize Greenland prompted threats of retaliatory tariffs from the EU, putting pressure on Treasury bonds and sending rates up (and stocks down).

According to a new Zillow report, 49 of the 50 largest U.S. markets will see housing costs ease in 2026 — and 20 will meet a key affordability threshold.