The inventory of homes for sale has been lower than normal for years now. It’s the primary reason for the home price spikes the housing market has seen since 2020. But according to one recent analysis from the National Association of Realtors’ consumer website, home buyers may have more homes to choose from this spring. That’s because the inventory of available homes for sale was up nearly 68 percent in February from where it was at the same time one year earlier. Danielle Hale, chief economist for the site, says the news is good for buyers, but sellers may need to adjust their expectations. “The number of homes for sale on the market is up significantly from a year ago, even though fewer homeowners have listed their home for sale in recent months,” Hale said. “With a smaller pool of buyers today and more competition from other homes on the market, home sellers will likely need to adjust their price expectations in the market this spring.” (source)

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Application Survey, average mortgage rates moved higher last week across all loan categories. Rates were up for 30-year fixed-rate loans with both conforming and jumbo balances, loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration, 15-year fixed-rate loans, and 5/1 ARMs. It was the third consecutive weekly increase. Joel Kan, MBA’s vice president and deputy chief economist, says inflation concerns are behind the upward trend. “Data on inflation, employment, and economic activity have signaled that inflation may not be cooling as quickly as anticipated, which continues to put upward pressure on rates,” Kan said. With rates moving higher, demand for mortgage loan applications has slowed, dropping 5.7 percent from one week earlier, including a 6 percent decline in demand for home purchase loans. The MBA’s weekly survey has been conducted since 1990 and covers 75 percent of all retail residential mortgage applications. (source)

In 2021, home prices set a record. According to the S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, they were nearly 19 percent higher than they were the year before. That was the largest annual home price gain in the 35-history of S&P’s index. Last year, though, prices slowed considerably, and with S&P’s latest release we know just how much. The index found that, after peaking in June, home prices ended the year up 5.8 percent from the previous year. Craig J. Lazzara, managing director at S&P, says prices started cooling half way through 2022. “The cooling in home prices that began in June 2022 continued through year end, as December marked the sixth consecutive month of declines for our National Composite Index,” Lazzara said. “For 2022 as a whole, the National Composite rose by 5.8 percent, the 15^th best performance in our 35-year history, although obviously well below 2021’s record-setting gain.” Depending on where the economy and mortgage rates head from here, Lazzara said it’s possible prices could continue their cooling trend this year. (source)