Existing-home sales nudged up in November as mortgage rates dipped, continuing a three-month rebound in the housing market. But heading into the colder months, many homeowners appear to be in no hurry to list and may even be waiting for a more lively housing market to take root in the months to come.
“Inventory growth is beginning to stall,” says Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the National Association of REALTORS®. “With distressed property sales at historic lows and housing wealth at an all-time high, homeowners are in no rush to list their properties during the winter months,” Yun says. NAR’s data shows that housing inventories fell 6% from October. Still, inventory has improved over the last year, about 8% higher than a year ago, giving buyers more options than they’ve had in years.
Seasonal changes are common this time of year; yet realtor.com® recently reported a record-high number of delistings, with about 6% of listings having been pulled from the market by home sellers. But this could reflect sellers’ flexibility and preference to wait rather than having to reduce their price, says Danielle Hale, chief economist at realtor.com®.
Nationally, home sales did improve last month, although at a slower pace. Existing-home sales—including single-family homes, townhomes, condos and co-ops—rose 0.5% in November, though they remain 1% below last year, NAR reported Friday. Meanwhile, home prices continue to climb, up 1.2% compared to a year ago, reaching a median existing-home price of $409,200 in November, NAR’s latest data shows.
Opportunities Open Up for Buyers
Lower mortgage rates may be drawing some once-priced-out home buyers off the sidelines. Mortgage rates averaged 6.24% in November, down from roughly 7% at the start of 2025 and helping to reduce buyers’ borrowing costs.
“Once you get rates just below six-and-a-half percent, that unlocks a lot of buyers,” says Brad O’Connor, chief economist at Florida REALTORS®. “Whenever mortgage rates fall, we see a response in the data—sales rise. And as rates dipped below about six-and-a-half percent this fall, the number of homes going under contract jumped—for the first time in quite a while.”
For example, Florida’s pending sales for single-family homes surged 23% in October compared to the prior year, coinciding this fall’s rate drop.
NAR predicts that a one-percentage drop in mortgage rates, from 7% to 6%—forecasted for 2026—could add about 5.5 million households, including 1.6 million renters, to the pool of potential home buyers.
Read more: A Mortgage Rate Drop to 6% Would Ring in More Home Buying
Further, “wage growth is outpacing home price gains, which improves housing affordability,” says Yun. He cautions though that if housing supply continues to tighten combined with strong buyer demand, upward pressure on home prices could once again hamper improvements to affordability.
For now, home buyers are having more time to decide, with homes lingering on the market longer: The median time on the market for properties in November rose to 36 days, up from 32 days a year ago, according to the REALTORS® Confidence Index. First-time home buyers are gradually re-entering the market, accounting for 30% of sales last month, but competition remains fierce from all-cash buyers, who made 27% of transactions in November.
Regional differences are becoming more pronounced: Some areas are seeing falling list prices, while others are still experiencing bidding wars. Nationally, 18% of homes sold above the asking price in November, with an average of 2.2 offers per listing, according to the REALTORS® Confidence Index, which reflects responses from more than 1,500 agents about their latest transactions.
“We’re seeing more negotiation on pricing, especially on resale homes,” Christine Belin, a real estate pro with Coldwell Banker Pacesetter Steel, says about her market in Corpus Christi, Texas. “Buyers are finding better deals and more incentives” than they’ve had in the past, Belin adds, who is also the 2025 board president of The Corpus Christi Association of REALTORS®. “This is a sweeter deal for buyers who just a few years ago may have felt like everything was stacked in the seller’s favor.”
Home Sales Breakdown by Region
Here’s a closer look at how existing-home sales fared across the country in November, according to NAR’s latest housing data:
- Northeast: Existing-home sales rose 4.1% in November compared to October, the highest increase last month compared to the four major regions of the U.S. Sales reached an annual rate of 510,000, although that is unchanged from a year ago. Median price: $480,800, up 1.1% from a year ago.
- Midwest: Sales fell 2% in November compared to October, settling in at an annual rate of 970,000. Sales are down 3% compared to a year earlier. Median price: $319,400, up 5.8% from a year ago.
- South: Existing-home sales increased 1.1% in November from a month ago, reaching an annual rate of 1.89 million, which is unchanged from levels a year ago. Median price: $361,000, up 0.8% from a year earlier.
- West: Sales held steady in November compared to October at an annual rate of 760,000, although that is down 1.3% compared to a year ago. Median price: $618,900, down 0.9% from November 2024.
