Despite weaker competition, median home prices rose 1.7% year over year to $435,545 in September, the highest September level on record. Redfin noted this was the largest price increase in six months. The gain is attributed to a recent decline in new listings, which has tightened supply even as demand stays soft.
Redfin’s data shows that only 25.3% of homes sold above list price, down from 28.5% a year earlier, while the average sale-to-list-price ratio slipped to 98.6%. The share of homes going under contract within two weeks also dropped to 32.8%, the lowest for any September since 2019.
The Midwest led in price growth, with Milwaukee up 9.1%, followed by Detroit at 7.9% and Cleveland at 7.4%. Texas metros saw the steepest declines—Dallas (-2.7%), Austin (-2.3%), and Houston (-1.5%).
On the sales front, Providence, Rhode Island, and San Francisco, California, recorded double-digit gains, while Detroit and Orlando, Florida, experienced notable declines. Active listings rose most in Washington, D.C. (21.1%) and Las Vegas (20.7%), but fell in San Francisco and San Jose.
Existing-home sales increased 0.4% month over month and 4.5% from a year earlier to an annualized rate of 4.25 million, supported by declining mortgage rates, which averaged 6.35% in September—the lowest in a year, according to Redfin.