Sales of existing houses slipped in March, in the midst of high mortgage rates. Here, a house for sale in Colorado Springs, Colorado, in 2023.
David Zalubowski / AP
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tilting legend
David Zalubowski / AP
The spring housing market was supposed to explode. Instead, it moans.
Sales of existing houses in March fell 5.9% from February – the biggest drop from one month to the next since November 2022 When it was adjusted seasonally.
Compared to a year ago, sales in March fell 2.4% compared to March 2024.
The decline came as a surprise, after an increase in sales in February. More inventory has struck the market, which had to stimulate sales, and spring tends to be among the busiest times for sales of houses, because parents with children try to move when the school came out for the summer.
Instead, sales figures suggest that the housing market is in a continuous collapse, hampered by high mortgage rates.
After declining in the first months of the year, mortgage rates have increased in the past two weeks, as President Trump’s tariff threats have disrupted the bond markets which help influence mortgage rates.
The average rate for a fixed rate mortgage of 30 years was 6.81% compared to last week, according to data from Freddie Mac. In March and early April, rates were closer to 6.6%.
Meanwhile, the prices of houses are also climbing – although more slowly than before. The median sale price of the existing house for Mars was $ 403,700. This represents an increase of $ 392,900 from a year ago and $ 398,400 in February.
Oliver Allen, senior American economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, expects sales of “flatline” houses. He notes that existing sales have closely followed mortgage rates in recent years: when rates increase, sales have been falling – and vice versa.
“Overview is still part of a very sieved housing market, frozen by the Gulf between the typical market rates on new mortgages – almost 7% at the moment – and rates on existing mortgages – which on average 4.3% in the fourth quarter”, writes Allen.
Low sales of houses could also report something larger in American society: less economic mobility. The economic status of people can be “frozen”, said Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of Realtors, with fewer people translating more pleasant houses.
The last two years have been incredibly slow, sales of existing houses at their lowest levels since the mid -1990s.
Sales of new houses are more pink
Elsewhere on the market, another story takes place. Sales of new Unifamilial houses increased by 7.4% compared to February and 6% more than a year ago. It is according to data from the US Census Bureau and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development published on Wednesday.
The median selling price of new houses sold in March 2025 was $ 403,600 – a little lower than the median selling price of a existing House.
It is unusual: there is generally a premium of 15 to 20% for new houses, said Yun. The price parity of this month between new and existing houses is an indication that house manufacturers consist more of building smaller and cheaper houses – and not McMans at high prices.
This offer is good news for buyers who have been sheltered from the existing domestic market – although certain regions, especially the northeast, build few new housing.
However, there are signs that this year’s spring market could be low.
Mortgage requests decreased by 12.7% compared to a week earlier, according to data from the Deathgage Bankers Association for the week ending on April 18.
This is the result of the fact that mortgage rates have jumped in the past two weeks, said president and chief executive officer of MBA, Bob Broeksmit, in a statement.
“(M) All potential borrowers will probably be on the sidelines until they have a better idea of management than rates and the economy are heading,” he said.
