A Midyear Housing Forecast for 2025

As we move into the second half of 2025, a clearer picture of the housing market is starting to emerge. While buyers and sellers alike may still feel like they’re navigating uncertainty, real estate experts are coming together around one key idea: the market isn’t crashing—it’s stabilizing.

Over the past few years, we’ve ridden a roller coaster of home prices and mortgage rates. But today, those wild swings have started to settle. Instead of dramatic rises or drops, experts are expecting steady ground ahead. National forecasts suggest that home prices will grow modestly through the rest of the year—nothing like the double-digit spikes we saw during the pandemic frenzy, but still an upward trend.

Why the steady pace? A big part of it is low housing inventory. There simply aren’t enough homes for sale to meet demand. So even as mortgage rates remain relatively high, buyers are still out there, and competition—though not as fierce—is keeping prices from falling.

Some folks are holding off, hoping for rates to drop before making a move. That’s understandable. But industry pros are reminding buyers that trying to time the market perfectly rarely works out. A better approach might be to buy when the right home appears and refinance later if rates come down.

On the flip side, if you’re thinking about selling, there’s opportunity here. While you might not get 2021 bidding-war prices, demand is still healthy, and the limited number of listings works in your favor. Sellers who price right and present their homes well are still seeing strong interest.

In summary, I’d say the second half of 2025 looks like a return to something more normal—still competitive, still active, but without the chaos. If you're planning to buy or sell, the best move might just be to act based on your life and needs rather than waiting for a perfect market that may never come.