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The housing market looks like it's starting to tip in buyers' favor.
That's because more homes on the market around the US are seeing price cuts, alleviating some pressure on buyers who have been sidelined by elevated mortgage rates and record-high home prices.
The number of homes for sale that saw a price cut in August rose to 19.3%, according to Realtor.com data. That's the highest proportion of homes that saw a price reduction during any August in the last five years, the real estate listings site said in a housing market update.
Price cuts were the most concentrated in the West and the Midwest, the firm said, with the number of price reductions rising 3.5% and 3.3% in those regions respectively. But home prices also fell nationwide, with the US median home price dipping 1.5% to $429,990 last month.
Sellers have been more open to cutting asking prices, likely because many are losing patience as their properties continue to sit on the market, the firm said. The average listed home spent 53 days on the market before being sold in August, a full week longer than homes sold in August of last year.
"A growing number of homes on the market and rising share of price cuts indicate that today's housing market isn't as heavily tipped towards sellers as it has been in recent years," Danielle Hale, Realtor.com's chief economist, said in a statement.
Homebuying conditions have loosened up for buyers over the last year, largely due to more supply slowly making its way to the market. Active home listings surged 36% last month, notching their highest level since the pandemic, Realtor.com said.
Demand, meanwhile, has faded in some key metros. In cities like Miami and Austin — two boomtowns that saw a surge of buyers during the pandemic — prices have dropped by as much as 11% over the past year, the firm said in a separate report.
"The 2024 housing market has clearly been less frenzied than in prior years," Hale said.
