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March 14, 2025 Economic and Housing Market Update

Danielle Hale 2 days ago

0 4 minutes read

Mar 14, 2025

March 14, 2025

The Realtor.com® economics team video update gives you the relevant economic and real estate information you need to know each week every Friday to navigate the housing market as a homebuyer, home seller, or industry professional.
For the week ending March 14, Realtor.com® Chief Economist Danielle Hale discusses the latest inflation data, mortgage rates, homebuyer sentiment, weekly housing data, and the upcoming Best time to Sell as well as highlight the Housing Supply Gap report that we released during SXSW earlier this week.
Inflation data improved in February reversing its recent upward creep. While this is good news, it has been overshadowed by other data and concerns.
Danielle covers how the shift in bond yields has influenced mortgage rates and what that could mean for the spring buying season this year as well as how it’s already impacting home purchase sentiment.
Realtor.com weekly housing inventory showed that listing prices softened as new listings and active inventory growth both rose and homes took longer to sell. These are all signs consistent with a housing market shifting into buyer-friendlier territory.
When the market is shifting and uncertain, it can be wise to hone in on seasonal patterns that are pretty predictable. Realtor.com released a Best Time to Sell report that gives home owners the context they need to take advantage of typical seasonal patterns in buying and selling. Nationwide, the best time to list a home for sale is roughly one month away – April 13 – 19. Danielle reviews what factors make this the best week.
And finally, Danielle recaps her trip to Austin for a series of panel discussions at SXSW hosted by Realtor.com on the challenges of and opportunities to address America’s housing shortage. In conjunction, she shares the key takeaways from the Housing Supply Gap report, released this week.

VIDEO TRANSCRIPT:

I’m Danielle Hale, Chief Economist at Realtor.com®. As we near the ides of March –I’m going to discuss the latest inflation data, mortgage rates, homebuyer sentiment, weekly housing data, and the upcoming Best time to Sell as well as highlight the Housing Supply Gap report that we released during SXSW earlier this week.
After months of being perhaps the most important indicator, this week’s inflation data barely made noise as it reversed its upward creep, dipping lower in both overall and core measures. While this is good news, it has been overshadowed by other concerns.
Stock markets have corrected as investors attempt to adjust expectations for the shift in tariff policy. This has prompted some to seek safety in bonds and driven 10-year yields down from 4.5% one month ago to 4.3% or lower. This shift had propelled mortgage rates lower for 7 weeks, but that streak was broken this week as mortgage rates inched up. Nonetheless, the market mortgage rate trailed its year ago pace for a 4th week, timing that could make for a better spring buying season this year.
While mortgage rates began easing in mid-January, they remained high through much of February and this weighed down home purchase sentiment alongside rising worries about respondents’ personal financial situations.
On the bright side, the share of those saying that now is a good time to buy was the highest in over a year, while the share of those saying that it’s a good time to sell was the lowest in more than a year.
On the one hand, this aligns with the data. Realtor.com weekly housing inventory showed that listing prices softened as new listings and active inventory growth both rose and homes took longer to sell. These are all signs consistent with a housing market shifting into buyer-friendlier territory.
At the same time, when the market is shifting and uncertain, it can be wise to hone in on seasonal patterns that are pretty predictable. Realtor.com this week released a Best Time to Sell report, that gives home owners the context they need to take advantage of typical seasonal patterns in buying and selling. Nationwide, the best time to list a home for sale is roughly one month away – April 13 – 19. Sellers hitting this sweet spot can anticipate faster sales than at other times of the year, more eyeballs on their listing, and higher prices with lower likelihood of having to make a reduction.
And finally, I was fortunate enough to join my colleagues in Austin this week for the release of our Housing Supply Gap report. Realtor.com hosted a series of panel discussions at SXSW on the challenges of and opportunities to address America’s housing shortage.
This year’s report gave reason for optimism: new construction outpaced household formations for the first time since 2016–progress that, if sustained, could mean that the supply gap closes in 7.5 years. But that’s a long time to wait for the 3.8 million homes needed, which includes demand from an estimated 1.6 million Gen Z and millennial households that didn’t exist in 2024 due in part to a lack of affordable housing.
You can find all the details, including full reports and our housing data for download, at realtor.com/research. You can also follow us on X (formerly twitter) for real time updates. And instagram for graphics.