Regionally, trends diverged: month-over-month sales increased in the Midwest and West but fell in the Northeast and South, while year-over-year figures were greater in the South and West and lower in the Northeast and Midwest.
Lawrence Yun”Improving price conditions have yet to induce more purchasing activity,” stated NAR Chief Financial expert Lawrence Yun. “With mortgage rates nearing 6%, an extra 5.5 million homes that could not get approved for a mortgage one year earlier would qualify at today’s lower rates. Most newly qualifying households do not act immediately, however based upon previous experience, about 10% could get in the market– possibly adding roughly 550,000 new property buyers this year compared with in 2015.”
Yun warned, however, that without an increase in housing supply, these new buyers could just drive up home rates, worsening cost obstacles. He highlighted the current passage of the Real estate for the 21st Century Act in your home of Representatives, calling it a bipartisan effort to broaden housing supply and lower barriers to homeownership.
The improved cost comes in the middle of declining home mortgage rates. Freddie Mac reported that the 30-year fixed-rate home mortgage (FRM) balanced 6.01% since February 19, 2026, below 6.09% the prior week and 6.85% a year earlier. The 15-year FRM balanced 5.35%, likewise below 5.44% recently and 6.04% a year prior.
“Home mortgage rates dropped again today, now down to their most affordable level since September 2022,” said Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s Chief Financial expert. “This lower rate environment is not only improving cost for prospective property buyers, it’s likewise strengthening the financial position of house owners. Over the previous year, re-finance application activity has more than doubled, making it possible for many recent buyers to minimize their yearly home mortgage payments by thousands of dollars.”
Even with borrowing costs at multiyear lows, potential purchasers remain careful, indicating that rate declines alone might be insufficient to fire up a broad rebound in housing need. Experts point to lingering price pressures, minimal stock, and financial unpredictability as factors keeping numerous would-be buyers on the sidelines.
