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Existing-home sales fell in March to their slowest pace since the subprime mortgage crisis in 2009 as high home prices and mortgage rates continued to impede buyers, data released Thursday by the National Association of Realtors shows.
Sales dropped in all four major regions month over month, with total existing-home sales decreasing by 5.9 percent from February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.02 million in March. On an annual basis, sales dropped by 2.4 percent from March 2024’s rate of 4.12 million.
Economists had pegged March 2025’s existing-home sales to hit closer to 4.13 million units.
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“Homebuying and selling remained sluggish in March due to the affordability challenges associated with high mortgage rates,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement. “Residential housing mobility, currently at historical lows, signals the troublesome possibility of less economic mobility for society.”
Total inventory hit 1.33 million units in March, which was up 8.1 percent month over month, and up 19.8 percent year over year. At the current sales rate, unsold inventory is at a 4 month supply, which is up from 3.5 months in February 2025 and up from 3.2 months in March 2024.
The median existing-home sale price across all housing types rose 2.7 percent year over year to $403,700.
“In a stark contrast to the stock and bond markets, household wealth in residential real estate continues to reach new heights,” Yun added.
“With mortgage delinquencies at near-historical lows, the housing market is on solid footing. A small deceleration in home price gains, which was slightly below wage-growth increases in March, would be a welcome improvement for affordability. With real estate asset valuation at $52 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve Flow of Funds, each percentage point gain in home prices adds more than $500 billion to the household balance sheet.”
Homes typically stayed on the market for 36 days in March, according to the Realtors Confidence Index, down from 42 days in February and up from 33 days the year prior.
First-time homebuyers made up 32 percent of March home sales, up slightly from 31 percent in February and equal to March 2024.
Cash deals represented 26 percent of transactions, down from 32 percent in February and 28 percent in March 2024. Individual investors and second homebuyers (who represent many cash sales) bought 15 percent of homes in March, which was nearly equal to February 2025 and March 2024 figures.
Single-family sales declined 6.4 percent from February to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.64 million, which was down from 2.2 percent in March 2024. Existing condo and co-op sales stayed flat month over month at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 380,000 units, down 5 percent from the previous year.
By region
- In the Northeast, existing-home sales dropped 2 percent from February to an annual rate of 490,000. The median price rose 7.7 percent annually to $468,000.
- In the Midwest, existing-home sales dropped 5 percent from February to an annual rate of 950,000. The median price rose 3.5 percent annually to $302,100.
- In the South, existing-home sales declined 5.7 percent from February to an annual rate of 1.81 million. The median price ticked up 0.6 percent on an annual basis to $360,400.
- In the West, existing-home sales tanked 9.4 percent from February to an annual rate of 770,000. The median price increased 2.6 percent on an annual basis to $621,200.
