The housing market resale market stalls as mortgage fees drop sharply in monthly sales since 2022
The resale housing market stalled during a critical sales season in March as rising mortgage rates put buyers aside and deepened the challenges of affordability.
Existing home sales fell 5.9% in March to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 402 million. National Association of Realtors. This has shown a sharp monthly decline since November 2022. The economists voted in by Bloomberg had expected sales to reach 4.15 million.
Sales have slowed since last year, down 2.4% from the 4.2 million sales in March 2024.
“Home sales were delayed in March due to affordable challenges,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist at NAR, in a press release. “The mobility of housing, which is currently at historic low, shows the troublesome possibility of less economic mobility in society.”
House Hunters remain on the fence about buying a house The mortgage rate will march towards 7%. Separate data show that the second week has fallen to its lowest level since February, according to data from. Mortgage Banking Association.
This cautious sentiment comes amid the rise in housing inventory. At the end of March, total housing inventory reached 1.33 million units, an increase of 8.1% from February and a 19.8% increase from a year ago. Unsold home inventory currently represents four months of supply at its current sales pace, up from supply for 3.5 months in February and 3.2 months in March 2024.
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In addition to the affordable pricing challenges, the median existing home prices in March was $403,700, up 2.7% from the previous year. Prices have been seen in all regions, making it even more difficult for home buyers to navigate the already tough markets with rising mortgage rates.
“In stark contrast to the stock and bond markets, household wealth in residential real estate continues to reach new heights,” Yun said.
“The housing market is on a solid footing due to the nearby low mortgage delinquency. A slight slowdown in slightly lower housing prices rise in wage increases in March will be an improvement in the welcome of affordable prices.”
Dani Romero is a Yahoo Finance reporter. Follow her with x @daniromerotv.
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