A homebuyer on a $3,000 budget has gained $26,000 since last year as mortgage rates drop to the low-6% range. But pending home sales are still slipping.
The daily average mortgage rate dropped to 6.17% this week, near the lowest level in three years. Lower mortgage rates are curbing growth in monthly mortgage payments; the typical U.S. monthly payment is $2,556, up 0.6% year over year, the smallest increase in three months.
A homebuyer on a $3,000 budget can afford a $473,750 home at today’s mortgage rate, compared to the $447,750 home they could have bought one year ago, when rates were around 6.85%. Compared to one month ago, buyers have gained $9,500 in purchasing power; they could have bought a $464,250 home with rates sitting near 6.4%.
Despite more purchasing power, would-be buyers remain on the sidelines
Pending U.S. home sales fell 0.7% year over year during the four weeks ending October 19, the third straight week of declines.
There are a few reasons buyers are wary. One, the forces pushing mortgage rates down–economic uncertainty and political tensions–are also making some house hunters feel uneasy about making a major purchase. Buyers are also facing stubbornly high prices, with the median home-sale price up 2% year over year, the biggest increase in six months.
The selling side is holding up better. New listings rose 4.6%, the biggest increase in nearly five months, as sellers hope buyers pounce on lower rates. Nationwide, there are half a million more home sellers than buyers.
The big gap between home sellers and buyers, along with the improvement in purchasing power, make it a good time for buyers who can afford today’s high housing costs to jump into the market. Redfin agents in many parts of the country report that it feels like a buyer’s market, with sellers open to lowering the sale price and providing concessions.
“Buyers are scoring deals, especially those who can pay all cash and/or those who are open to new construction,” said Amanda Peterson, a Redfin Premier agent in Dallas. “One recent all-cash buyer paid $500,000 for a condo that was appraised at $685,000–and the seller agreed to pay upfront for six months of pricey HOA dues. And builders are offering steep discounts on new homes, especially in areas where they already have a lot of inventory and are still actively building. Builders are dropping prices, giving up to $20,000 in concessions, throwing in appliances, and buying down mortgage rates, sometimes to below 4%.”
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
6.17% (Oct. 22)
Near 3-year now
Down from 6.82%
Mortgage News Daily
Weekly average 30-year fixed mortgage rate
6.27% (week ending Oct. 16)
Near lowest level in a year
Down from 6.44%
Freddie Mac
Mortgage-purchase applications (seasonally adjusted)
Down 5% from a week earlier (as of week ending Oct. 17)
Up 20%
Mortgage Bankers Association
Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index
Up about 2% from a month earlier (as of week ending Oct. 19)
Down 12%
A measure of tours and other homebuying services from Redfin agents
Google searches of “homes for sale”
Unchanged from a month earlier (as of Oct. 19)
Up 20%
Google Trends
Touring activity
Up 12% from the start of the year (as of Oct. 19)
At this time last year, it was up 2% from the start of 2024
ShowingTime
Key housing-market data
U.S. highlights: Four weeks ending Oct. 19, 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 Oct. 19, 2025
Year-over-year change
Notes
Median sale price
$391,250
2%
Biggest increase in 6 months
Median asking price
$399,675
2.9%
Biggest increase in 5 months
Median monthly mortgage payment
$2,556 at a 6.27% mortgage rate
0.6%
Nearly $300 below May’s record high
Pending sales
77,167
-0.7%
Biggest decline in 4 months
New listings
88,195
4.6%
Biggest increase in nearly 5 months
Active listings
1,206,191
7.1%
Smallest increase since Feb. 2024
Months of supply
4.6
+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
30.3%
Down from 32%
Median days on market
48
+6 days
Share of homes sold above list price
23%
Down from 26%
Average sale-to-list price ratio
98.4%
Down from 98.7%
Metro-level highlights: Four weeks ending Oct. 19, 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
Cleveland (12%)
Detroit (8.3%)
Newark, NJ (7.7%)
San Francisco (6.7%)
Providence, RI (6%)
Dallas (-5.4%)
Jacksonville, FL (-3.7%)
Fort Lauderdale, FL (-1.9%)
Miami (-1.8%)
Denver (-1.7%)
Declined in 12 metros
Pending sales
Tampa, FL (32.9%)
West Palm Beach, FL (18.5%)
San Francisco (12.9%)
Pittsburgh (10.5%)
Fort Lauderdale, FL (8.8%)
Seattle (-17.3%)
San Antonio (-17%)
Denver (-13.5%)
Minneapolis (-8.8%)
New York (-8.7%)
Pending sales rose significantly in coastal Florida largely because two major hurricanes stalled the state’s housing market at this time last year
New listings
Tampa, FL (34.6%)
Providence, RI (11.2%)
West Palm Beach, FL (11.1%)
Pittsburgh (10.2%)
Phoenix (9.6%)
Denver (-12.8%)
San Francisco (-9.4%)
Anaheim, CA (-7.8%)
San Jose, CA (-7.8%)
San Diego (-7.2%)
New listings rose significantly in coastal Florida largely because two major hurricanes stalled the state’s housing market at this time last year
Refer to our metrics definition page for explanations of all the metrics used in this report.
