Graph and download economic data for Existing Home Sales (EXHOSLUSM495S) from Feb 2024 to Feb 2025 about headline figure, sales, housing, and USA.

The number of new houses sold in the United States took a big hit during the financial crisis, dropping from a high of around 1.3 million houses sold in 2005 to a low of 306 thousand homes sold in 2011 – around a 76 percent decrease. While the economy has largely recovered since the crisis, consumers remained hesitant when it comes to buying homes. In 2020, demand for housing surged and house sales volumes spiked to 822,000. House prices on the rise Unsurprisingly, the median sales price of new homes continues to rise. In fact, many Americans found that they were more interested in buying a home as a result of the pandemic. What types of homes are Americans buying? Undoubtedly, detached single-family houses constitute the majority of home purchases in the U.S. Approximately 88 percent of older Millennials who bought a home in 2022 shared that they bought a detached single-family house. Regardless of the age group, the most popular location to purchase a home is in the suburbs or in a subdivision.

The number of home sales on the home listing platform Zillow.com fell by one third between February 2022 and February 2023. In New York, one of the largest and most competitive housing markets in the country, the number of home sales nearly halved from the same month in the previous year.

The number of U.S. home sales in the United States declined in 2023, after soaring in 2021. A total of four million transactions of existing homes, including single-family, condo, and co-ops, were completed in 2023, down from 6.12 million in 2021. According to the forecast, the housing market is forecast to head for recovery in 2025, despite transaction volumes are expected to remain below the long-term average. Why have home sales declined? The housing boom during the coronavirus pandemic has demonstrated that being a homeowner is still an integral part of the American dream. Nevertheless, sentiment declined in the second half of 2022 and Americans across all generations agreed that the time was not right to buy a home. A combination of factors has led to house prices rocketing and making homeownership unaffordable for the average buyer. A survey among owners and renters found that the high home prices and unfavorable economic conditions were the two main barriers to making a home purchase. People who would like to purchase their own home need to save up a deposit, have a good credit score, and a steady and sufficient income to be approved for a mortgage. In 2022, mortgage rates experienced the most aggressive increase in history, making the total cost of homeownership substantially higher. Only 15 percent of U.S. renters could afford to become homeowners and in metros with highly competitive housing markets such as Los Angeles, CA, and Urban Honolulu, HI, this share was below five percent. Are U.S. home prices expected to fall? The median sales price of existing homes stood at 387,000 U.S. dollars in 2023 and was forecast to increase slightly until 2025. The development of the S&P/Case Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index shows that home prices experienced seven consecutive months of decline between June 2022 and January 2023, but this trend reversed in the following months. Despite mild fluctuations throughout the year, home prices in many metros are forecast to continue to grow, albeit at a much slower rate.

The average sales price of new homes in the United States experienced a slight decrease in 2024, dropping to 512,2000 U.S. dollars from the peak of 521,500 U.S. dollars in 2022. This decline came after years of substantial price increases, with the average price surpassing 400,000 U.S. dollars for the first time in 2021. The recent cooling in the housing market reflects broader economic trends and changing consumer sentiment towards homeownership. Factors influencing home prices and affordability The rapid rise in home prices over the past few years has been driven by several factors, including historically low mortgage rates and increased demand during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the market has since slowed down, with the number of home sales declining by over two million between 2021 and 2023. This decline can be attributed to rising mortgage rates and decreased affordability. The Housing Affordability Index hit a record low of 98.1 in 2023, indicating that the median-income family could no longer afford a median-priced home. Future outlook for the housing market Despite the recent cooling, experts forecast a potential recovery in the coming years. The Freddie Mac House Price Index showed a growth of 6.5 percent in 2023, which is still above the long-term average of 4.4 percent since 1990. However, homebuyer sentiment remains low across all age groups, with people aged 45 to 64 expressing the most pessimistic outlook. The median sales price of existing homes is expected to increase slightly until 2025, suggesting that affordability challenges may persist in the near future.

Graph and download economic data for Housing Inventory: Median Days on Market Year-Over-Year in the United States (MEDDAYONMARYYUS) from Jul 2017 to Feb 2025 about median and USA.

The number of housing units in the United States has grown year-on-year and in 2023, there were approximately 145 million homes. That was an increase of about 1.3 percent from the previous year - the highest annual increase recorded in the past 15 years. Homeownership in the U.S. Most of the housing stock in the U.S. is owner-occupied, meaning that the person who owns the home uses it as a primary residence. Homeownership is an integral part of the American Dream, with about two in three Americans living in an owner-occupied home. For older generations, the homeownership rate is even higher, showing that buying a home is an important milestone in life. Housing transactions slowing down During the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. experienced a housing market boom and witnessed an increase in the number of homes sold. Since 2020, when the market peaked, new homes transactions have slowed down and so have the sales of existing homes. That has affected the development of home prices, with several states across the country experiencing a decline in house prices.

Housing Starts in the United States increased to 1501 Thousand units in February from 1350 Thousand units in January of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Housing Starts - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

The U.S. housing market has slowed, after 13 consecutive years of rising home prices. In 2021, house prices surged by an unprecedented 18 percent, marking the highest increase on record. However, the market has since cooled, with the Freddie Mac House Price Index showing more modest growth between 2022 and 2024. In 2024, home prices increased by 4.2 percent. That was lower than the long-term average of 4.4 percent since 1990. Impact of mortgage rates on homebuying The recent cooling in the housing market can be partly attributed to rising mortgage rates. After reaching a record low of 2.96 percent in 2021, the average annual rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage more than doubled in 2023. This significant increase has made homeownership less affordable for many potential buyers, contributing to a substantial decline in home sales. Despite these challenges, forecasts suggest a potential recovery in the coming years. How much does it cost to buy a house in the U.S.? In 2023, the median sales price of an existing single-family home reached a record high of over 389,000 U.S. dollars. Newly built homes were even pricier, despite a slight decline in the median sales price in 2023. Naturally, home prices continue to vary significantly across the country, with West Virginia being the most affordable state for homebuyers.

Home prices in the U.S. reach new heights The American housing market continues to show remarkable resilience, with the S&P/Case Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index reaching an all-time high of 325.78 in July 2024. This figure represents a significant increase from the index value of 166.24 recorded in January 2015, highlighting the substantial growth in home prices over the past decade. The S&P Case Shiller National Home Price Index is based on the prices of single-family homes and is the leading indicator of the American housing market and one of the indicators of the state of the broader economy. The S&P Case Shiller National Home Price Index series also includes S&P/Case Shiller 20-City Composite Home Price Index and S&P/Case Shiller 10-City Composite Home Price Index – measuring the home price changes in the major U.S. metropolitan areas, as well as twenty composite indices for the leading U.S. cities. Market fluctuations and recovery Despite the overall upward trend, the housing market has experienced some fluctuations in recent years. During the housing boom in 2021, the number of existing home sales reached the highest level since 2006. However, transaction volumes quickly plummeted, as the soaring interest rates and out-of-reach prices led to housing sentiment deteriorating. Factors influencing home prices Several factors have contributed to the rise in home prices, including a chronic supply shortage, the gradual decline in interest rates, and the spike in demand during the COVID-19 pandemic. During the subprime mortgage crisis (2007-2010), the construction of new homes declined dramatically. Although it has gradually increased since then, the number of new building permits, home starts, and completions are still shy from the levels before the crisis. With demand outweighing supply, competition for homes can be fierce, leading to bidding wars and soaring prices. The supply of existing homes is further constrained, as homeowners are less likely to sell and move homes due to the worsened lending conditions.

House Price Index YoY in the United States remained unchanged at 4.80 percent in January. This dataset includes a chart with historical data for the United States FHFA House Price Index YoY.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of house sales in the UK spiked, followed by a period of decline. In 2023, the housing market slowed notably, and in September 2024, transaction volumes fell below 50,000. House sales volumes are affected by a number of factors, including mortgage rates, house prices, supply, demand, as well as the overall health of the market. The economic uncertainty and rising unemployment rates has also affected the homebuyer sentiment of Brits. How have UK house prices developed over the past 10 years? House prices in the UK have increased year-on-year since 2015, except for a brief period of decline in the second half of 2023 and the beginning of 2024. That is based on the 12-month percentage change of the UK house price index. At the peak of the housing boom in 2022, prices soared by nearly 14 percent. The decline that followed was mild, at under three percent. The cooling in the market was more pronounced in England and Wales, where the average house price declined in 2023. Conversely, growth in Scotland and Northern Ireland continued. What is the impact of mortgage rates on house sales? For a long period, mortgage rates were at record-low, allowing prospective homebuyers to take out a 10-year loan at a mortgage rate of less than three percent. In the last quarter of 2021, this period came to an end as the Bank of England rose the bank lending rate to contain the spike in inflation. Naturally, the higher borrowing costs affected consumer sentiment, urging many homebuyers to place their plans on hold and leading to a drop in sales.

The median home sales price is the middle value of the prices for which homes are sold (both market and private transactions) within a calendar year. The median value is used as opposed to the average so that both extremely high and extremely low prices do not distort the prices for which homes are sold. This measure does not take into account the assessed value of a property.Source: First American Real Estate Solutions (FARES) and RBIntel Years Available: 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022

Existing Home Sales in Ireland decreased to 2824 Units in January from 3811 Units in December of 2024. This dataset provides - Ireland Existing Home Sales- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

New Home Sales in Turkey increased to 33784 Units in February from 32785 Units in January of 2025. This dataset provides - Turkey New Home Sales- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

United States Pending Home Sales Index: Northeast data was reported at 67.900 2001=100 in Sep 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 96.700 2001=100 for Aug 2018. United States Pending Home Sales Index: Northeast data is updated monthly, averaging 84.300 2001=100 from Jan 2006 (Median) to Sep 2018, with 153 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 143.900 2001=100 in May 2017 and a record low of 37.800 2001=100 in Dec 2008. United States Pending Home Sales Index: Northeast data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Association of Realtors. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.EB004: Pending Home Sales Index.

New Home Sales in Singapore increased to 1575 Units in February from 1083 Units in January of 2025. This dataset provides - Singapore New Home Sales- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

The number of new homes sold increased in 2023, after falling in 2022. Considering that the vast majority of purchases were financed through a conventional mortgage, it is of no surprise that the rising mortgage interest rates are one of the main factors for transactions slowing. In fact, more buyers were willing to buy cash in 2023 than in 2021. How has the increase in sales activity influenced house prices? When demand outweighs supply, prices tend to increase. In the United States, the recent spike in house sales has contributed to average house prices growing at a higher pace than in recent years. Furthermore, the rising house price-to-income ratio indicates that homes are becoming less affordable. Has the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic affected Americans’ homeownership plans? Overall, the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has positively influenced the homeownership plans of people in the U.S. According to a survey conducted among American adults, 28 percent of Millennials were more interested in buying a home due to the coronavirus pandemic, compared to 13 percent who were less interested.

The value of multifamily real estate investment in the United States has declined since 2021 when it peaked at 344 billion U.S. dollars. Some of the main reasons for the decline in investment included the tighter lending conditions, the increase in valuations over the past years, and the soaring construction costs. In 2024, the sector attracted nearly 143 billion U.S. dollars, accounting for more than one third of the total commercial market.

Commercial property prices in the U.S. increased plateaued in 2023 after a period of rapid growth between 2014 and 2021. In the third quarter of 2023, the commercial property price index equaled 207.61 index points, reflecting a double increase in prices since 2010, which was the baseline year for the index. How have prices of different property types developed over the past years? After more than a decade of uninterrupted growth, office real estate prices started to decline in 2022, reflecting a decline in occupier demand and a tougher lending environment. Industrial real estate prices, which have grown rapidly over the past few years, also experienced a correction in late 2022. Retail real estate prices displayed most resilience amid the difficult economic environment, with the equal weighed repeat sales index remaining stable. How much is invested in new commercial properties? The value of commercial real estate construction has been on the rise since 2010 in the United States. This trend mirrors the recovery seen across all economic sectors after the 2007-2009 recession. However, investment volumes in commercial property vary by type, with private office space, warehouses, and retails reading the pack.