The U.S. housing market has hit a slowdown reminiscent of February 2015, with February 2025 statistics revealing a 7% drop in home sales compared to last year. This downturn is largely attributed to the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes aimed at curbing inflation. Despite these higher mortgage rates, home prices remain high, with February's median sales price reported at $352,000, just under the all-time high. The increased cost of mortgages is making homeownership less affordable, particularly compared to rates from a decade ago.
The last time fewer homes changed hands in any month was February 2015. Yes, a decade ago, when the nation had 7% fewer households and Americans were flocking to the movie version of a racy novel and dancing to a Bruno Mars hit.
Homebuying across the country has chilled since the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates in early 2022 to fight the worst bout of inflation in four decades.
February's median U.S. sales price of $352,000 for all residences was the ninth-highest on record and doubled in 10 years.
Think about affordability going back to February 2015, when the average 30-year fixed loan rate was 3.7%, not the 6.8% of February 2025.
Collection
[
|
...
]