T he median existing home sales price rose to $408,800 in March, a 1.4% annual increase that marks the 33rd consecutive month of price growth. This price climb persists despite a 3.6% month-over-month drop in existing home sales, which fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.98 million. The pace is the slowest for any March since 2009.
Related Brief 20h ago
real estate A pricing gap of $160,000 over asking reveals how Long Island's spring market rewards accuracy
A home in Massapequa recently went into contract for more than $160,000 over the asking price after drawing more than 50 groups to a single open house. That surge in demand did not happen by accident. It followed a deliberate pricing decision: list slightly under market value. When done right, that gap becomes the catalyst for immediate sale. If the house is priced to sell, it will sell immediately. If it's not, it will linger. That formula is now driving transactions across Long Island, where winter's slowdown has given way to spring urgency. Agents report a wave of buyers returning after delaying searches during December, January, and February. But unlike the pandemic-era frenzy, today's market rewards precision, not speculation. Homes that are priced correctly—according to local conditions—enter contract within days, sometimes hours. Those that aren't sit. Some agents, facing years of low inventory, have expanded into Brooklyn, Queens, and Suffolk County just to find viable listings. The spring market is not manic. It is disciplined. And the $160,000 premium on one Massapequa home is not an outlier. It is the penalty for getting pricing wrong.
Inventory rose 3.0% from February to 1.36 million units, increasing the months of supply to 4.1. Despite this accumulation, NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun stated that inventory remains a major constraint, noting that an additional 300,000 to 500,000 homes would be required to bring the market closer to normal conditions.
Related Brief 1d ago
housing market Housing inventory growth is nearing zero — and could turn negative as mortgage rates hover below 6.5%
National housing inventory rose by just 1,517 units in the week of April 3–10, 2026, compared to a 11,263-unit rise the same week in 2025. That gap isn’t noise — it’s momentum shifting toward a likely negative year-over-year inventory reading by mid-2026. The brake on supply isn’t sudden. It’s been tightening since mortgage rates settled below 6.5%, reducing the urgency for homeowners to trade up or cash out. Rates ended the week at 6.39%, down from 6.43%, and have not crossed 7% in months — a level that historically pushes more sellers into the market. But in 2026, even with brief spikes toward 6.64% due to the Iran conflict, the rate curve has been the lowest since 2022. That stability keeps sellers sitting. New listings last week totaled 70,244, down from 76,271 the same week last year. That shortfall follows a trend: despite seasonal expectations of 80,000–100,000 new listings during peak months, the market has not seen a single week in that range. Inventory growth has decelerated from 33% year-over-year in mid-2025 to just 3.21% in early April 2026. The slowdown isn’t isolated. Pending sales fell to 68,864 last week from 71,632 a year earlier. Purchase applications were down 7% year over year, despite a 1% weekly gain. The 10-year yield, which ended the week at 4.32%, has held below levels that would push mortgage spreads wider. And while spreads closed at 2.05% — down from 2.11% — they remain better than 2023–2025 peaks. Had 2023’s worst spreads applied today, mortgage rates would be 7.45%, not 6.39%. But the current environment isn’t punishing borrowing — it’s freezing movement. If trends hold, national housing inventory could post negative year-over-year growth by mid-2026.
Year-over-year, sales declined 1.0%. The decline is attributed to lower consumer confidence and softer job growth.
Related Brief 1h ago
real estate Florida's Housing Shortagey describes a 121,000-Unit Gap in Owner-Occupied and Rental Properties
Housing inventory in high-demand markets is facing price pressure. This is the result of a combination of 66,000 missing owner-occupied homes and 55,000 rental units across Florida. A statewide housing supply model developed by Florida State University’s DeVoe L. Moore Institute, in partnership with the Reason Foundation and the Florida Policy Project, analyzed housing surpluses and shortages across all 67 counties. The most severe shortages are concentrated in Miami-Dade, Fort Lauderdale, and Tampa. Miami-Dade County has the highest estimated shortage in Florida at just over 12,700 units. Broward County follows with 10,233 units, and Hillsborough County has 8,360 units. Duval County is short 6,941 units. Researchers point to limiting factors in new construction that have restricted housing inventory.
Because of rising mortgage rates, the National Association of Realtors has revised its 2026 housing forecast downward, now expecting existing home sales to rise 4.0% annually. The trade group expects home sale prices to rise 4.0% in 2026.
Related Brief 2h ago
housing market trends The housing market isn't turning on price — it's turning on the gap between what sellers want and what buyers will pay
Buyers are accepting prices 9% below asking, while one-third of sellers are cutting list prices. This gap between what sellers want and what buyers will pay is the real signal the housing market is negotiating a turn — not through sudden price drops, but through eroding alignment between expectation and reality. Median list prices hover near $440,000, but that number masks the growing disconnect: well-priced homes still sell in 63 days, yet overpriced ones languish for 121. That 58-day spread defines today’s two-speed market. Withdrawals now make up 22% of weekly activity, and deal fallout is spreading — signs that transactions are failing under the weight of mismatched expectations. Housing markets do not turn when prices fall. They turn when seller pricing behavior and buyer response fall out of sync. That pattern repeated in 2022, when markets like Phoenix saw the gap between asking and accepted prices widen into double digits before resetting. Today, inventory growth is slowing, new listings remain constrained, and mortgage rates below 7% are keeping demand functional but capped. The market is not collapsing, nor reaccelerating — it is balancing. But that balance is local. Divergence across metros is not noise; it is the earliest signal. Some areas will reaccelerate, others will show stress first. The next phase hinges on one thing: whether the gap between asking and accepted prices narrows or widens. If it widens, friction increases and price adjustments become more likely. If it narrows, buyer acceptance is returning, and stabilization may follow. The signal will not come from price. It will come from whether buyers are actually following. The earliest shifts will appear in specific metros before national data reflects them.
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