New listings of U.S. homes for sale fell 1.7% year-over-year during the four weeks ended December 7, the biggest decline in more than two years, according to Redfin.
Would-be home sellers are pulling back partly because it’s the end of the year and partly because they’re reacting to lackluster demand, the brokerage firm owned by Rocket says in a report.
Pending home sales are down 4.1% from a year ago, the biggest decline in 10 months. The homes that are selling are taking a long time to do so – an average 51 days to contract – roughly a week longer than the average last year.
The median home-sale price is up 2%, with prices rising despite slow demand partly because of tightening inventory. The weekly average mortgage rate has fallen to its lowest level in over a year, but it’s still well above 6%.
“Some would-be sellers are sitting tight because the market is flat,” says Josh Felder, a Redfin Premier agent in San Francisco, in the report. “That’s partly because we’re heading into the normal seasonal slowdown, and partly because prospective sellers and house hunters are watching and waiting to see what’s going to happen next year with rates, the stock market and tariffs. Some homeowners will put their home on the market in 2026 when they have a better idea of how the economy will shape up.”
Photo: Dillon Kydd