Pending U.S. Home Sales Fall 6% As Would-Be Buyers Sit Out Slow Winter Market

U.S pending home sales fell 5.8% from a year earlier during the four weeks ending February 15, the biggest decline in a year. That’s according to a new report from Redfin, the real estate brokerage powered by Rocket. The typical home that does go under contract is taking 67 days to do so—a week longer than last year and the longest span since early 2019. Would-be buyers are sitting on the sidelines largely because it’s expensive to purchase a home. The median home-sale price rose 1.1% year over year, the biggest uptick in two months, and the weekly average mortgage rate is 6.09%—near the lowest level in three years, but double pandemic-era lows. The median monthly mortgage payment is $2,601, down 2.9% from a year ago, but only about $200 shy of the all-time high. Additionally, severe winter weather across much of the country kept house hunters at home over the last several weeks. And some prospective buyers are wary due to economic uncertainty, especially for lower-income Americans. But there are recent signals painting a more positive picture of the economy: The most recent jobs report was stronger than expected, and inflation is easing. On the selling side, new listings dropped 3.1% year over year and the total number of homes for sale fell 1.5%, the second straight decline after roughly two years of increases. Potential sellers are backing off because they’re noticing that demand is tepid; many only want to sell for top dollar. “There are a few things keeping buyers at home, like snowy weather and 6%-plus mortgage rates,” said Aaron Glicken, a Redfin Premier agent in Nashville, TN. “But for the house hunters who are venturing out, it’s the strongest buyer’s market I can remember. Buyers are able to be picky, ask for concessions, and come in below asking price. Some sellers won’t budge because they bought at the height of the market a few years ago and prices have corrected a bit. But some need to offload their homes–and in those cases, buyers have leverage. I’m advising buyers who are serious about moving to take advantage of the slow market; it should pick up in the spring, especially if rates come down.” For Redfin economists’ takes on the housing market, please visit Redfin’s “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 6.05% (Feb. 18) Near 3-year low Down from 7.01% Mortgage News Daily Weekly average 30-year fixed mortgage rate 6.09% (week ending Feb. 12) Near 3-year low Down from 6.87% Freddie Mac Mortgage-purchase applications (seasonally adjusted) Down 3% from a week earlier (as of week ending Feb. 13) Up 8% Mortgage Bankers Association Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index (seasonally adjusted) Down about 1% from a month earlier (as of week ending Feb. 15) Down 10% A measure of tours and other homebuying services from Redfin agents Google searches of “homes for sale” Down about 4% from a month earlier (as of Feb. 14) Essentially unchanged Google Trends Touring activity Up 3% from the start of the year (as of Feb. 16) At this time last year, it was up 11% from the start of 2025 ShowingTime Key housing-market data U.S. highlights: Four weeks ending Feb. 15, 2025 Redfin’s national metrics include data from 400+ U.S. metro areas and are based on homes listed and/or sold during the period. Weekly housing-market data goes back through 2015. Subject to revision. Four weeks ending Feb. 15, 2025 Year-over-year change Notes Median sale price $379,176 1.1% Median asking price $412,735 3.3% Median monthly mortgage payment $2,601 at a 6.09% mortgage rate -2.9% Pending sales 70,206 -5.8% Biggest decline since Jan. 2025 New listings 78,635 -3.1% Active listings 997,176 -3.2% Biggest decline since Nov. 2023 Months of supply 5.6 +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 30.7% Essentially unchanged Median days on market 67 +7 days Longest in nearly 7 years Share of homes sold above list price 19.3% Down from 21% Average sale-to-list price ratio 97.8% Down from 98% Metro-level highlights: Four weeks ending Feb. 15, 2025 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 Milwaukee (10.4%) Warren, MI (6.9%) San Francisco (5.9%) Columbus, OH (5.7%) Philadelphia (5.5%) Dallas (-3.7%) San Jose, CA (-3.6%) Fort Lauderdale, FL (-3.4%) Oakland, CA (-3.2%) San Antonio (-2.9%)  Declined in 20 metros Pending sales West Palm Beach, FL (10.2%) Jacksonville, FL (5.9%) Portland, OR (1.7%) Denver (1%) Sacramento, CA (0.9%) Oakland, CA (-24.1%) Nashville, TN (-18.3%) Houston (-16.7%) Nassau County, NY (-15.9%) Minneapolis (-15.5%) Increased in 7 metros New listings San Jose, CA (20.8%) Seattle (12.1%) Portland, OR (8.8%) Phoenix (8.5%) Denver (7.1%) Nassau County, NY (-21.8%) Nashville, TN (-19.8%) Indianapolis (-16%) Dallas (-13.6%) Philadelphia (-12.2%) To view the full report, including charts, please visit: https://www.redfin.com/news/housing-market-update-pending-sales-fall-slow-winter