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.

Key information about House Prices Growth

• US house prices grew 5.2% YoY in Sep 2024, following an increase of 6.2% YoY in the previous quarter.
• YoY growth data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 1992 to Sep 2024, with an average growth rate of 5.5%.
• House price data reached an all-time high of 17.7% in Sep 2021 and a record low of -12.4% in Dec 2008.

CEIC calculates House Prices Growth from quarterly House Price Index. Federal Housing Finance Agency provides House Price Index with base January 1991=100.

Graph and download economic data for Median Sales Price of Houses Sold for the United States (MSPUS) from Q1 1963 to Q4 2024 about sales, median, housing, and USA.

The U.S. housing market continues to evolve, with the median home price forecast to reach 426,000 U.S. dollars by the second quarter of 2026. This projection comes after a period of significant growth and recent fluctuations, reflecting the complex interplay of economic factors affecting the real estate sector. The rising costs have not only impacted home prices, but also down payments, with the median down payment more than doubling since 2012. Regional variations in housing costs Home prices and down payments vary dramatically across the United States. While the national median down payment stood at approximately 26,700 U.S. dollars in early 2024, homebuyers in states like California, Massachusetts, and Hawaii faced down payments exceeding 74,000 U.S. dollars. This disparity highlights the challenges of homeownership in high-cost markets and underscores the importance of location in determining housing affordability. Market dynamics and future outlook The housing market has shown signs of cooling after years of rapid growth, with more modest price increases of 4.8 percent in 2022 and 6.5 percent in 2023. This slowdown can be attributed in part to rising mortgage rates, which have tempered demand. Despite these challenges, most states continued to see year-over-year price growth in the fourth quarter of 2023, with Rhode Island and Vermont leading the pack at over 13 percent appreciation. As the market adjusts to new economic realities, potential homebuyers and investors alike will be watching closely for signs of stabilization or renewed growth in the coming years.

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.

The CoStar Commercial Repeat-Sales Index (CCRSI) for multifamily real estate in the United States started to decline in the second half of 2022, after more than a decade of steady growth. The index measures the development of sales prices of multifamily properties, with 2000 chosen as a base year. An index value of 200 means that sales prices have doubled since 2000. In March 2024, the value-weighed index, which is more representative of the high-value deals in core markets, hit 325 index points, down from a market peak of 416 in June 2022. The equal-weighed index is more influenced by the lower-priced deals that comprise the higher share of transactions. It stood at 438 index points in March 2024, down from a market peak of 503 in June 2022.

Turkey experienced the highest annual change in house prices in 2024, followed by Russia and the United Arab Emirates. In the first quarter of the year, the nominal house price in Turkey grew by 55 percent, while in Russia and the United Arab Emirates, the increase was 19 and 18 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, several markets, including Hong Kong, Luxembourg, and Germany, saw prices fall. That has to do with an overall cooling of the global housing market that started in 2022. When accounting for inflation, house price growth was slower, and even more countries saw the market shrink.

The number of home sales in the United States peaked in 2021 at almost seven million after steadily rising since 2018. Nevertheless, the market contracted in the following year, with transaction volumes falling to 4.8 million. Home sales remained muted in 2024, with a mild increase expected in 2025 and 2026. A major factor driving this trend is the unprecedented increase in mortgage interest rates due to high inflation. How have U.S. home prices developed over time? The average sales price of new homes has also been rising since 2011. Buyer confidence seems to have recovered after the property crash, which has increased demand for homes and also the prices sellers are demanding for homes. At the same time, the affordability of U.S. homes has decreased. Both the number of existing and newly built homes sold has declined since the housing market boom during the coronavirus pandemic. Challenges in housing supply The number of housing units in the U.S. rose steadily between 1975 and 2005 but has remained fairly stable since then. Construction increased notably in the 1990s and early 2000s, with the number of construction starts steadily rising, before plummeting amid the infamous housing market crash. Housing starts slowly started to pick up in 2011, mirroring the economic recovery. In 2022, the supply of newly built homes plummeted again, as supply chain challenges following the COVID-19 pandemic and tariffs on essential construction materials such as steel and lumber led to prices soaring.

The U.S. mortgage market has declined notably since 2020 and 2021, mostly due to the effect of higher borrowing costs on refinance mortgages. The value of refinancing mortgage originations, amounted to 86 billion U.S. dollars in the first quarter of 2024, down from a peak of 851 billion U.S. dollars in the fourth quarter of 2020. The value of mortgage loans for the purchase of a property recorded milder fluctuations, with a value of 291 billion U.S. dollars in the first quarter of 2024, and a market peak of 477 billion U.S. dollars in the first quarter of 2022. According to the forecast, mortgage lending is expected to slightly increase until the end of 2025. The cost of mortgage borrowing in the U.S. Mortgage interest rates in the U.S. rose dramatically in 2022 and continued to increase in 2023. In 2020, a homebuyer could lock in a 30-year fixed interest rate of under three percent, whereas in 2023, the average rate for the same mortgage type exceeded seven percent. That has led to a decline in homebuyer sentiment, and an increasing share of the population pessimistic about buying a home in the current market. The effect of a slower housing market on property prices and rents According to the S&P/Case Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index, housing prices experienced a slight correction in early 2023, as property transactions declined. Nevertheless, the index continued to grow in the following months. On the other hand, residential rents have increased steadily since 2000.

Graph and download economic data for Real Residential Property Prices for United States (QUSR628BIS) from Q1 1970 to Q3 2024 about residential, HPI, housing, real, price index, indexes, price, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Housing Inventory: Median Days on Market in the United States (MEDDAYONMARUS) from Jul 2016 to Feb 2025 about median and USA.

Housing Index in the United States increased to 436.50 points in January from 435.80 points in December of 2024. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States House Price Index MoM Change - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

Graph and download economic data for All-Transactions House Price Index for the United States (USSTHPI) from Q1 1975 to Q4 2024 about appraisers, HPI, housing, price index, indexes, price, and USA.

Global house prices experienced a significant shift in 2022, with advanced economies seeing a notable decline after a prolonged period of growth. The real house price index (adjusted for inflation) for advanced economies peaked at nearly 140 index points in early 2022 before falling to around 132 points by the first quarter of 2024. This represents a reversal of the upward trend that had characterized the housing market for roughly a decade. Conversely, real house prices in emerging economies resumed growing, after a brief correction in the second half of 2022. What is behind the slowdown? Inflation and slow economic growth have been the primary drivers for the cooling of the housing market. Secondly, the growing gap between incomes and house prices since 2012 has decreased the affordability of homeownership. Last but not least, homebuyers in 2024 faced dramatically higher mortgage interest rates, further contributing to worsening sentiment and declining transactions. Some markets continue to grow While many countries witnessed a deceleration in house price growth in 2022, some markets continued to see substantial increases. Turkey, in particular, stood out with a nominal increase in house prices of over 55 percent in the 1st quarter of 2024. Other countries that recorded a two-digit growth include Russia and the United Arab Emirates. When accounting for inflation, the three countries with the fastest growing residential prices in early 2024 were the United Arab Emirates, Poland, and Bulgaria.

Graph and download economic data for All-Transactions House Price Index for California (CASTHPI) from Q1 1975 to Q4 2024 about appraisers, CA, HPI, housing, price index, indexes, price, and USA.

Key information about House Prices Growth

• Romania house prices grew 7.0% YoY in Sep 2022, following an increase of 8.5% YoY in the previous quarter.
• YoY growth data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 2010 to Sep 2022, with an average growth rate of 3.0%.
• House price data reached an all-time high of 8.5% in Jun 2022 and a record low of -17.1% in Dec 2011.

CEIC calculates House Prices Growth from quarterly Residential Property Price Index. The National Institute of Statistics provides Residential Property Price Index with base 2015=100. House Prices Growth covers Residential Settlements only. House Prices Growth prior to Q1 2017 is calculated from Residential Property Price Index with base 2009=100.

Housing Index in Sweden decreased to 942 points in the fourth quarter of 2024 from 943 points in the third quarter of 2024. This dataset provides - Sweden House Price Index - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Key information about House Prices Growth

• Bosnia and Herzegovina house prices grew 17.0% YoY in Dec 2022, following an increase of 2.3% YoY in the previous year.
• YoY growth data is updated yearly, available from Dec 2009 to Dec 2022, with an average growth rate of 1.1%.
• House price data reached an all-time high of 17.0% in Dec 2022 and a record low of -4.7% in Dec 2011.

CEIC calculates House Prices Growth from annual Average Price per Square Meter of Completed Dwellings. The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Federal Office of Statistics provides Average Price per Square Meter of Completed Dwellings in local currency. House Prices Growth covers the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina only.