High mortgage rates and elevated home prices combined to crush home sales in January. Pending sales, which are based on signed contracts for existing homes, dropped 4.6% from December to the lowest level since the National Association of Realtors began tracking this metric in 2001. Sales were down 5.2% from January 2024. These sales are an indicator of future closings. “It is unclear if the coldest January in 25 years contributed to fewer buyers in the market, and if so, expect greater sales activity in upcoming months,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “However, it’s evident that elevated home prices and higher mortgage rates strained affordability.” While weather may have been a factor, sales rose month-to-month in the Northeast and fell in the West, which would have seen the smallest impact of cold temperatures. Sales fell hardest in the South, which has been the most active region for home sales in recent years. Pending home sales drop to the lowest level on record in January If this continues we may start to see a dramatic drop in prices
Oopsie. Gonna see more Florida realtors taking on second jobs. Lots of listings in my area have been on the market 6 months or longer.
Lol, been hearing the bubble is gonna pop for years. Everything just keeps getting more expensive, even with mtg rates still climbing.
agree. It is exceedingly rare for housing to crater despite what we saw in 2008/9....prices tend to just flatten out.
