Redfin’s Homebuyer Demand Index is ticking up as the spring home-selling season draws nearer. That hasn’t yet converted to a meaningful improvement in pending sales–but Redfin agents expect it will in the next few months.

(NASDAQ: RDFN) — Redfin’s Homebuyer Demand Index—a measure of requests for tours and other buying services from Redfin agents—rose 6% from a week earlier during the week ending January 28, according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage. An additional measure of showings also signals tours have ticked up over the last week.

More buyers are touring homes because mortgage rates are holding steady below 7%, down from 8% this past October, and some buyers are worried prices will increase more if they wait longer. Sale prices rose 5.5% year over year during the four weeks ending January 28, the biggest increase in over a year.

But that earliest-stage demand hasn’t yet translated into home sales. Mortgage-purchase applications declined from a week earlier and pending sales posted their biggest year-over-year decline in four months, likely reflecting tepid early-stage demand during the middle of January. Home tours and other actions buyers typically take before applying for a mortgage was lower than expected in mid-January as daily average mortgage rates inched up from their December low point and severe weather kept many would-be buyers at home.

Redfin agents expect the increase in tours to convert into an improvement in pending sales over the next few months. That’s partly because of typical seasonality: Home listings and sales usually pick up as spring approaches.

“I thought declining mortgage rates and more inventory would cause the market to take off right at the start of the new year. But even though demand has picked up some, I’m not wowed,” said Hal Bennett, a Redfin Premier agent in the Seattle area. “Now I believe this year’s market will launch in the spring, once 6% rates are even more entrenched in buyers’ psyches and more homeowners list their houses.”

This week’s economic news suggests that mortgage rates are unlikely to meaningfully fall in the next few months. At its press conference on January 31, the Fed signaled they’re unlikely to cut interest rates in March, which will probably keep mortgage rates elevated near their current level into the spring, though Redfin economists still expect them to gradually decline by the end of the year.

Leading indicators

Key housing-market data

To view the full report, including charts, please visit:

https://www.redfin.com/news/housing-market-update-more-house-hunters-touring-homes

About Redfin

Redfin (www.redfin.com) is a technology-powered real estate company. We help people find a place to live with brokerage, rentals, lending, title insurance, and renovations services. We also run the country's #1 real estate brokerage site. Our home-buying customers see homes first with same day tours, and our lending and title services help them close quickly. Customers selling a home in certain markets can have our renovations crew fix up their home to sell for top dollar. Our rentals business empowers millions nationwide to find apartments and houses for rent. Customers who buy and sell with Redfin pay a 1% listing fee, subject to minimums, less than half of what brokerages commonly charge. Since launching in 2006, we've saved customers more than $1.5 billion in commissions. We serve more than 100 markets across the U.S. and Canada and employ over 4,000 people.

For more information or to contact a local Redfin real estate agent, visit www.redfin.com. To learn about housing market trends and download data, visit the Redfin Data Center. To be added to Redfin's press release distribution list, email press@redfin.com. To view Redfin's press center, click here.

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