According to a new report from Redfin, the median U.S. monthly housing payment reached $2,647 during the four weeks ending June 14, the highest level in a year and just about $100 shy of 2023’s all-time high.
The report noted that housing payments are rising because both home-sale prices and mortgage rates remain high.
The median sale price rose 2.3% year over year to a record high of $403,889, and the weekly average mortgage rate is 6.52%, near its highest level in 10 months, Redfin said.
According to Redfin, high costs are pricing many would-be homebuyers out of the market, and economic uncertainty is causing others to think twice before making a major purchase.
Five Straight Weeks of Decline
That has pushed pending home sales down 0.6% week over week, the fifth straight week of declines, Redfin said.
Also, some prospective sellers are backing off as they notice dwindling demand. New listings fell 0.4% week over week, and the total number of homes for sale fell 0.1%, Redfin noted.
With hundreds of thousands more home sellers than buyers across the country, Redfin said its agents are advising sellers to price competitively.
“A lot of sellers want to list higher than they should, and my biggest struggle is getting them to price with the market–or just below the market, if they want to create a frenzy,” said Dawn Kane, a Redfin Premier agent in Maryland and Pennsylvania. “Homes that just hit the market are typically the most popular, so pricing high and letting a home sit can stigmatize a listing. Don’t be the house priced at $1 million in a neighborhood where comparable homes are selling for $800,000-$900,000.”
