Looking at this week's data from Realtor.com Research, there's a meaningful shift happening in the national housing market that's worth paying attention to. Mortgage rates have climbed above seven percent for the first time since early 2025, and the market is responding pretty quickly. We're seeing active listings grow at their fastest pace in at least six months, up six point three percent compared to a year ago. Meanwhile, new listings are barely budging, and asking prices have actually dropped below where they were last year. That's the kind of movement you notice.
What's interesting to me is how buyers and sellers are both adjusting their behavior. Homes are still moving faster than they did a year ago, spending two fewer days on the market, which tells me sellers understand the environment and are pricing accordingly. In fact, according to the Realtor.com data, more than one in five listings now carries a price reduction, the highest share we've seen since October 2022. That's a signal that sellers recognize they need to be competitive right now.
The inventory picture is shifting too. We're now sitting just nine point one percent below pre-pandemic inventory levels, which is the tightest that gap has been since the pandemic started. This is partly because we're comparing to a tough period last fall when rates were falling and more homes moved quickly. But it also shows that even with rates above seven percent and the mortgage rate lock-in effect keeping some homeowners in place, people who genuinely need to sell are still coming to market.
On the pricing front, the median listing price is down one point four percent year over year, and we've now seen thirty seven consecutive weeks of asking prices declining compared to the same weeks in the prior year. Year to date, prices are running about one point nine percent below 2025 levels. This is driven by that growing inventory and sellers adjusting their expectations to reality.
What I am seeing locally here in the Bay Area and East Bay is that these national trends are giving buyers who are serious about moving some genuine negotiating power they haven't had in a while. The inventory is building, sellers are motivated, and pricing is coming down. If you've been waiting on the sidelines hoping for conditions to shift in your favor, the environment is slowly moving that direction.
