New construction and recovering inventory are helping shift markets in favor of buyers down south

More markets are tilting in favor of buyers — including a few outside the South.Sold homes are typically on the market for 23 days before selling, a week faster than last year.October's mortgage-rate rebound raised monthly mortgage costs by 2.8% over September.

SEATTLE, Nov. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Home buyers are gaining leverage in negotiations across the nation as competition eased in October, the latest market report1 from Zillow® shows. Zillow's market heat index indicates competition nationwide is creeping closer to becoming a buyers market as activity winds down for the winter. 

Unpredictable rate movements are quickly changing the affordability picture for home shoppers

Lower mortgage rates in September brought the share of homes a middle-income household could comfortably afford to a 19-month high.Mortgage rates have already climbed back to nearly 7%, highlighting the need for real-time data for buyers to understand what they can afford.Mortgage rates remain lower than they were a year ago. Even with the increase in October, the share of affordable listings was greater than a year earlier in all of the nation's 50 largest metro areas.

New Zillow survey data finds many buyers are securing lower mortgage rates from home builders, sellers, or borrowing from friends or family members

Although average mortgage rates are much higher, 45% of buyers who have purchased a home in the past year report having a rate below 5%.Mortgage rates rose from 2.65% in 2021 to 7.79% in fall 2023, impacting home shoppers' buying power. The typical monthly mortgage payment has more than doubled since before the pandemic.The most common way buyers have secured below-market rates is through special financing offers from sellers or home builders.

More than half of Gen Z renters are rent burdened in each of the country's 30 largest metros

58.6% of Gen Z renters nationwide are rent burdened, though 60.2% of Millennials experienced rent burden at the same ageIn more than half of the 30 largest U.S. metros, Millennials in 2012 were more likely to be rent burdened than Gen Z renters at the same age in 2022Over the past decade, rent burden for young adults has decreased the most in Austin and increased the most in Houston

SEATTLE, Oct. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly half of all U.S. renter households are burdened by rent costs, with Gen Z renters shouldering the heaviest load, a new analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau's 2022 American Community Survey (ACS) by Zillow® and its New York City brand StreetEasy® shows. Across the country, three in five Gen Z renters (ages 18-25) spend more than 30% of income on housing expenses. In 21 of the country's 30 largest metros, that share is even higher. In San Diego, Los Angeles, and Sacramento, for example, nearly three-quarters of Gen Z renters are rent burdened.

New listings and sales moved closer to pre-pandemic norms in September.A buyer who could have afforded the typical U.S. home in May saw their buying power boosted by more than $40,000 by September, thanks to lower mortgage rates.Buyers markets are spreading across the Southeast, with more homes for sale than in most other areas of the country.

SEATTLE, Oct. 15, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Both buyers and sellers are showing up with more interest as lower mortgage rates provide a boost to the housing market's "last call" before the shopping season winds down. Another break in mortgage rates over September brought a flurry of activity, according to the latest market report from Zillow®,1 which, depending on the path of rates ahead, could continue into October.

SEATTLE, Oct.14 , 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Recent Zillow® research shows Hispanic homeowners making strides in narrowing the home value gap with white homeowners over the past two years, regaining ground lost during the pandemic. The gap is now the narrowest ever observed.

Hispanic-owned homes are currently worth 11.9% less than homes owned by non-Hispanic white households, down from 12.1% last year and a recent high of 12.4% in December 2021. The gap was as wide as 18% in 2012, following the global financial crisis of 2007–2009, when many minority communities were hit especially hard, setting back progress by several years. The slow climb back continued steadily until interrupted in 2021, but the course has now been corrected.

For-sale listings on Zillow will now feature detailed climate risk information for five key categories — flood, wildfire, wind, heat and air quality — along with insurance recommendations

SEATTLE, Sept. 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Zillow® is introducing climate risk data, provided by First Street, the standard for climate risk financial modeling, on for-sale property listings across the U.S. Home shoppers will gain insights into five key risks—flood, wildfire, wind, heat and air quality—directly from listing pages, complete with risk scores, interactive maps and insurance requirements.

Competition among buyers is likely to extend into the fall thanks to improved affordability

Monthly mortgage payments have fallen by more than $100 nationwide since peaking in May.Price cuts ticked down in August but are still common, landing on more than 1 in 4 listings.Competition is stiff for attractive listings, with more than one-third of homes selling for over asking price.

SEATTLE, Sept. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Lower mortgage rates and rising inventory are giving home buyers a window of opportunity at an unusual time of year, according to the latest market report1 from Zillow®. Affordability has improved substantially for home buyers, and competition among them could extend into the fall instead of fading away as is typical at this time of year.

Home shoppers and renters can now search by commute, affordability, schools and points of interest in the Zillow app

SEATTLE, Sept. 4, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Zillow's AI-powered search experience is getting an upgrade. Now buyers and renters can search for their next home using simple, everyday language in even more ways — including by commute time, affordability, schools and nearby points of interest. Through natural language search, Zillow analyzes millions of listings to deliver the most relevant homes or rentals personalized to the user's preferences.

Home shoppers held up by high costs could restart their search in the shoulder season

Zillow's market heat index shows the market moved into neutral, more balanced territory in July — the first time this year that it's been anything other than a sellers' market. Competition for homes eased — homes that sold went pending in 18 days, six more days than last year.An early August drop in mortgage rates should bring in more new buyers than sellers, reviving competition. 

SEATTLE, Aug. 15, 2024  /PRNewswire/ -- Competition for homes and price appreciation tapered off faster than normal in July as high housing costs continued to stymie shoppers, according to the Zillow® market report.1 But recent drops in mortgage rates should spur more competition as we head into fall.