U.S. home prices inched up again in October, rising 0.3% from the previous month on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to Redfin’s latest Home Price Index.
That’s slightly stronger than September’s 0.2% increase and reflects a market that is holding steady rather than accelerating. Compared with a year earlier, prices were 2.9% higher, a modest slowdown from September’s 3.1% annual gain and a continuation of the cooling trend from the first half of the year, when price growth was above 5%.
Earlier in 2025, prices slowed as a jump in active listings gave buyers more choices. But in recent months, inventory growth has eased, and that tightening has helped lift prices even as buyer demand stays weak. According to Redfin’s Head of Economics Research, Chen Zhao, the market is “moving sideways.”
Fewer Metros Experienced Price Declines
Zhao also noted that prices are rising slightly because the number of new listings has pulled back, but demand remains low and many potential buyers who don’t need to move are opting to wait. Sellers who list now often do so out of necessity, yet they face a shrinking pool of buyers dealing with high costs and ongoing uncertainty.
One sign of market stabilization is that fewer metros saw price declines. In October, prices fell in 14 of the 50 largest U.S. metros, down from 20 in September and 30 in August. This reveals the third consecutive month of improvement.
The share of metros with a dip in pricing has shifted dramatically in recent years, with almost none declined during the low-rate boom of 2020 and 2021, while nearly 80% did in late 2022 after mortgage rates surged. Conditions leveled out in 2023 before softening again this summer when a spike in inventory pushed July declines to 37 metros.
Price changes varied widely across markets in October. San Francisco, Chicago, and West Palm Beach posted the strongest monthly increases, while Fort Lauderdale, Philadelphia, and Dallas saw the biggest declines. Looking at the past year, the biggest gains were in Cleveland, Chicago, and Milwaukee, while Tampa, Austin, and Dallas recorded the largest annual drops.
