MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News
80
December 2025
F I N A L T H O U G H T S
"major constraints persist"
Dr. Lisa Sturtevant, Chief Economist at Bright MLS, elaborated on pending home sales activity, which
increased between September and October, and noted that even though reduced rates have attracted more
homebuyers this fall, the housing market is still severely limited, with home sales activity likely to remain
sluggish until the end of 2025.
"one step closer to balance"
Odeta Kushi, Deputy Chief Economist at First American, explained that housing demand, supply, and
mortgage rates were more balanced in the years before 2020, which provided a fair baseline for what a
"normal housing market" looked like. However, she added that as more homeowners list, more buyers will
have opportunities to purchase—offering more room for optimism in 2026.
"buyer regret trending down"
Laura Eddy, VP of Research and Insights at Realtor.com, discussed how the U.S. housing market has shifted
from a fast-paced sellers' market to one that gives buyers more breathing room, resulting in a downward
trend of homebuyer regret as today's buyers are generally more qualified, taking extra time to weigh their
options and make confident decisions.
"renewed pressure on households"
Joe Wadford, Economist at the Bank of America Institute, revealed that inflation and cost increases are
picking back up again, ultimately placing some increased financial pressure on U.S. households as the gap
between wages and expenses has continued to widen.
"a tale of two markets"
Nicholas Godec, CFA, CAIA, CIPM, Head of Fixed Income Tradables & Commodities at S&P Dow Jones Indices,
detailed how regional performance within the U.S. housing market differs in popular metros compared to smaller
cities, as national home price growth slowed to its weakest performance since mid-2023 in September.
