Paradox in the US real estate market

VTV.vn - Real estate brokerage company Redfin believes that the current housing market is witnessing the strongest buyer advantage in more than a decade.

A house with a for sale sign in Washington, DC, USA. Photo: THX/TTXVN

According to Redfin, in October 2025, sellers are expected to outnumber buyers by 36.8%. This is the largest gap since data began being recorded in 2013. Redfin defines a “buyer’s market” as one in which there are at least 10% more sellers than buyers. Economists at the company estimate that the last time the market was more heavily tilted toward buyers was in the years following the 2008 financial crisis, when home prices collapsed across the country.

But Redfin researchers also note that this is really only a market for those who can afford it. They say many Americans are being squeezed out of the game due to declining affordability. And that’s the crux of the issue. Can this really be called a buyer’s market when so many potential buyers are still unaffordable and not even looking?

According to a new report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), real estate agents say housing affordability is the biggest challenge facing their businesses. This far outweighs other challenges, including the cost of operating in the industry. Lower-income potential homebuyers are facing challenges due to a shaky job market, slow wage growth and worsening financial conditions, said Selma Hepp, chief economist at Cotality.

Meanwhile, according to data from Cotality, although house prices continue to weaken, nationwide prices in September were still 1.2% higher than the same period last year. Notably, house prices are now about 50% higher than five years ago, that is, the pre-pandemic period.

Mortgage rates have also fallen from recent peaks, but remain double what they were in the early years of the pandemic. Cost remains a major barrier to home ownership, with about 75 of the top 100 housing markets still considered overvalued, according to Cotality.

Despite the end of the government shutdown, consumer sentiment around home buying has yet to pick up. In its November sentiment survey, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) said builder sales expectations for the next six months had dropped sharply.

Robert Dietz, chief economist at the NAHB, said they continue to see weakness on the demand side. He explained that a cooling labor market and tight consumer finances are contributing to a difficult business environment.

Source: https://vtv.vn/nghich-ly-tren-thi-truong-bat-dong-san-my-100251120165520177.htm