The average weekly mortgage rate hit 7.1% this week, its highest level since November 2023, as it became clear the Fed would keep interest rates high longer than expected. High prices and mortgage rates drove the median monthly housing payment to a record $2,843, up 13% year over year.
Prices are soaring despite the fact that there’s more inventory than last year. New listings are up 10.2% year over year, though growth in listings may be losing momentum as stubbornly high rates solidify the lock-in effect. Prices are being buoyed by the fact that inventory remains low despite the recent improvement. Demand is holding up fairly well in the face of 7%-plus rates, though some indicators are starting to show a slowdown. Redfin’s Homebuyer Demand Index—a measure of requests for tours and other buying services from Redfin agents—is near its highest level in about eight months, but mortgage-purchase applications are down slightly (-1%) week over week.
“My advice to sellers is to price your home fairly. Even though sellers are getting top dollar at the moment, they should price competitively to attract buyers from the start and avoid having to drop their price as stubbornly high mortgage rates eat into buying budgets,” said Redfin Economic Research Lead Chen Zhao. “My advice for serious buyers who can afford today’s costs is to shop for your dream home and accept that this year is probably not the time to find a dream deal. Price growth may cool slightly in the coming months if mortgage rates stay high or rates might fall slightly—but overall housing costs are likely to remain elevated for the foreseeable future.”
Leading indicators
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Indicators of homebuying demand and activity |
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Value (if applicable) |
Recent change |
Year-over-year change |
Source |
|
Daily average 30-year fixed mortgage rate |
7.39% (April 24) |
Up from roughly 7% one month earlier; near highest level since November 2023 |
Up from 6.59% |
Mortgage News Daily |
|
Weekly average 30-year fixed mortgage rate |
7.1% (week ending April 18) |
Up from 6.87% a month earlier; highest level since November 2023 |
Up from 6.39% |
Freddie Mac |
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Mortgage-purchase applications (seasonally adjusted) |
|
Decreased 1% from a week earlier (as of week ending April 19) |
Down 15% |
Mortgage Bankers Association |
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Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index (seasonally adjusted) |
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Up 3% from a month earlier (as of week ending April 21) |
Down 9% |
Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index, a measure of requests for tours and other homebuying services from Redfin agents |
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Touring activity |
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Up 34% from the start of the year (as of April 23) |
At this time last year, it was up 29% from the start of 2023 |
ShowingTime, a home touring technology company |
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Google searches for “home for sale” |
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Unchanged from a month earlier (as of April 21) |
Down 17% |
Google Trends |
Key housing-market data
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U.S. highlights: Four weeks ending April 21, 2024 Redfin’s national metrics include data from 400+ U.S. metro areas, and is based on homes listed and/or sold during the period. Weekly housing-market data goes back through 2015. Subject to revision. |
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Four weeks ending April 21, 2024 |
Year-over-year change |
Notes |
|
Median sale price |
$383,725 |
5.2% |
All-time high; biggest increase since Oct. 2022, with the exception of the 4 weeks ending Feb. 11, 2024 and the 4 weeks ending Feb. 18, 2024 (5.3% increases) |
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Median asking price |
$415,925 |
6.7% |
All-time high; biggest increase since Sept. 2022 |
|
Median monthly mortgage payment |
$2,843 at a 7.1% mortgage rate |
12.6% |
All-time high |
|
Pending sales |
86,786 |
-3.8% |
Biggest decline in 6 weeks |
|
New listings |
95,580 |
10.2% |
|
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Active listings |
840,411 |
10.1% |
|
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Months of supply |
3.2 months |
+0.4 pts. |
4 to 5 months of supply is considered balanced, with a lower number indicating seller’s market conditions |
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Share of homes off market in two weeks |
43.3% |
Down from 46% |
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Median days on market |
35 |
Unchanged |
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Share of homes sold above list price |
29.8% |
Essentially unchanged |
|
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Share of homes with a price drop |
6% |
+1.7 pts. |
|
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Average sale-to-list price ratio |
99.2% |
+0.1 pt. |
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Metro-level highlights: Four weeks ending April 21, 2024 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. |
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Metros with biggest year-over-year increases |
Metros with biggest year-over-year decreases |
Notes |
|
Median sale price |
Anaheim, CA (25%) New Brunswick, NJ (14.9%) Detroit (14%) West Palm Beach, FL (13.4%) San Jose, CA (13%) |
Austin, TX (-0.9%) |
Declined in just 1 metro |
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Pending sales |
San Jose, CA (14.2%) San Francisco (6.4%) Seattle (5.7%) Milwaukee (5.2%) Anaheim, CA (4.5% |
Nassau County, NY (-13.9%) Phoenix (-13%) Fort Lauderdale, FL (-12.5%) Houston (-11.9%) Riverside, CA (-11.4%) |
Increased in 9 metros |
|
New listings |
San Jose, CA (43.1%) Jacksonville, FL (29.1%) Phoenix (25.8%) Sacramento, CA (24%) Miami (21.9%) |
Newark, NJ (-9.1%) Cleveland, OH (-5.9%) Chicago (-4.7%) Milwaukee (-4.7%) Providence, RI (-4.4%) Detroit (-4%) |
Declined in 6 metros |
View the full report, including charts, here.
