Experts Say All Signs Point to a Buyer-Friendly Spring Home Shopping Season

Home shoppers will like the steady pace of inventory as we move toward the spring selling season.

Homes prices continue to fall and inventory is rising, according to the Realtor.com® Weekly Housing Trends report for the week ending March 12.

Several economic indicators play a role in this week's data. Realtor.com economists note that existing home sales picked up in February, but still remain below last year’s level.

The "softer-than-expected" job numbers also create uncertainty for people looking to buy a new home. But mortgage interest rates continue to stay close to 6%, despite the one week where rates dipped into the 5% range for the first time since September 2022. Mortgage rates rose to 6.11% for the week ending March 12, according to the latest data from Freddie Mac.

Realtor.com economists say all signs point to a "very buyer-friendly spring home shopping season."

Buyers benefit as active inventory rises

The number of homes for sale exceeds 2025 inventory levels. Active inventory rose 6.2% year over year, which benefits buyers, but the pace of inventory recovery has slowed.

The report reveals that during the same time last year inventory was growing closer to 30% year over year.

New listings, which is a measure of sellers putting their homes up for sale, grew 1.5% year over year, but this growth has been up and down—meaning both negative and positive growth—this year.

A home spent a median of 58 days on the market—four days longer than a year ago and below 60 days for the first time since August 2025. Economists contribute this slowdown to mortgage rates being at or close to 6%, which "makes things easier on buyers" and may lure them to the housing market.

Overall, the median list price fell 2.4% year over year, which marks the 20th straight week of negative or flat growth. It also marks the seventh straight week in which prices are 2% or more below last year’s levels.

Falling prices are welcome news for buyers. The price per square foot metric also dropped to -2.5%, which is the lowest on record. It also reflects the drop in home prices, not solely because of a mix of smaller homes being listed.