Housing costs could come down in the coming months, as mortgage rates are coming down a bit and there are signs price growth could slow

(NASDAQ: RDFN) — Pending home sales fell 3.8%, the biggest year-over-year decline in nearly four months, during the four weeks ending June 16. That’s according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage.

Buyers are shying away from earlier steps in the house-hunting process, too: Redfin’s Homebuyer Demand Index, a measure of requests for tours and other buying services from Redfin agents, declined 17% year over year to its lowest level since February.

Buyers are backing off largely because housing costs are high. The median U.S. home-sale price is up 4.8% to an all-time high of $396,000, and the median monthly mortgage payment is $2,781, about $60 below its record high. The weekly average mortgage rate declined slightly to 6.95% this week, but it’s still more than double pandemic-era lows.

The irony of near-record-high housing costs: They’re causing buyers to back off, and enough of them have backed off to give buyers who remain more negotiating power for certain homes. The other piece of good news for buyers is that housing costs could come down soon. There are signs that price growth could lose some momentum: The share of sellers dropping their list price is at its highest level since November 2022, and asking-price growth has already slowed. Mortgage rates have fallen a bit since last week’s cooler-than-expected inflation report, and they may continue declining.

New listings are still near historic lows. Another reason for the decline in pending sales is a lack of new, desirable listings for buyers to choose from. New listings are up 7.7% year over year, but they’re sitting well below typical levels for this time of year; the only time on record June listings have been lower was in 2023.

Many home listings are becoming stale, sitting on the market for 30 days or longer without going under contract; Redfin agents report that most buyers are willing to pay sky-high housing costs only for move-in ready homes in popular neighborhoods.

“A few years ago, I never would have told a seller they need to freshen up their paint, fix their furnace and make sure their roof is up to date before putting their home on the market–but now, I tell them to make the house as pretty as they possibly can,” said Des Bourgeois, a Redfin Premier agent in Detroit. “Buyers are still out there and they’re willing to pay today’s high prices, but only if the house is in really good shape. They don’t want to spend extra money on paint or new appliances.”

Homes that need work and/or aren’t in the most desirable locations can be a good opportunity for today’s buyers: They’re selling under asking price in some places–if they do sell. “Things have reversed since the pandemic,” said Jonathan Ader, a Redfin Premier agent in the Palm Springs, CA area. “Now, most homes—the exception is relatively affordable homes that are move-in ready—are selling under asking price.”

For Redfin economists’ takes on the housing market, please visit Redfin’s “From Our Economists” page.

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Key housing-market data

To view the full report, including charts, please visit: https://www.redfin.com/news/housing-market-update-record-high-prices-buyers-gain-power

About Redfin

Redfin (www.redfin.com) is a technology-powered real estate company. We help people find a place to live with brokerage, rentals, lending, title insurance, and renovations services. We run the country's #1 real estate brokerage site. Our customers can save thousands in fees while working with a top agent. Our home-buying customers see homes first with on-demand tours, and our lending and title services help them close quickly. Customers selling a home can have our renovations crew fix it up to sell for top dollar. Our rentals business empowers millions nationwide to find apartments and houses for rent. Since launching in 2006, we've saved customers more than $1.6 billion in commissions. We serve more than 100 markets across the U.S. and Canada and employ over 4,000 people.

Redfin’s subsidiaries and affiliated brands include: Bay Equity Home Loans®, Rent.™, Apartment Guide®, Title Forward® and WalkScore®.

For more information or to contact a local Redfin real estate agent, visit www.redfin.com. To learn about housing market trends and download data, visit the Redfin Data Center. To be added to Redfin's press release distribution list, email press@redfin.com. To view Redfin's press center, click here.

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