The housing market is seeing a significant slowdown, with the pace of home sales in March marking the slowest for that month since 2009, during the depths of the global financial crisis. According to MarketWatch, sales of existing homes fell to a six-month low as prospective buyers pulled back, uncertain about the economy and job market.
Gallaway, a real-estate investor and farmer, is one of the many homeowners experiencing the pain of a stalled market. His father built their San Carlos, Calif., home in the 1970s. Though it’s fully paid off and Gallaway was in no rush to sell, he found himself surprised by the lack of interest.
“I personally expected it to sell very quickly,” Gallaway told MarketWatch.
He initially listed the homes at $3.5 million but later dropped the price to $3 million. Despite this reduction, he still received what he described as “lowball offers.” He noted, “I think people are just less willing to plunk down millions of dollars for a property” amid economic uncertainty tied to the Trump administration’s policies.
Across State Lines, a Parallel Story
Nearly 800 miles away in Arizona, Ryan McDonough finds himself in a similar bind. He purchased a new home in Phoenix in January and closed the deal within three weeks. But selling his existing home in Prescott Valley, about 90 miles outside of Phoenix, has proven far more difficult.
“We’re hoping we made the right decision” in buying the Phoenix house, McDonough told MarketWatch. “But right now having two mortgages and two utility bills, two homeowners association [fees] … we’re really bleeding.”
The couple listed their old home in early February and have since cut the price from $630,000 to $609,000. Still, the property sits unsold, and the financial pressure is mounting. His combined mortgage payments total about $6,000 per month, and student loan repayments are resuming.
“I’m starting to think like I might need to go in with my financial assets and borrow from 401(k)s or some other assets I have,” McDonough said.
Existing-Home Sales Continue to Fall
The challenges faced by Gallaway and McDonough reflect a broader trend in the real estate market. Existing-home sales fell 5.9% in March from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.02 million, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). This marked the biggest one-month decline since November 2022.
“I was hoping that we would begin to see some meaningful recovery [in sales] this year. So far, it’s not happening,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the NAR.
Homes sales were also down 2.4% compared to March 2024. The pace fell short of economists’ expectations, who had forecast a drop to 4.13 million, according to a Dow Jones Newswires and Wall Street Journal survey.
Prices at Record Highs Despite Sluggish Demand
Despite falling sales, prices remain high. The median price for an existing home in March hit $403,700, an all-time high for that month, up 2.7% from a year earlier. The NAR noted that this figure was nearly equal to the median price of a newly built home, $403,600, an unusual occurrence.
In the Northeast, home prices jumped 7.7%, the highest regional increase, bringing the median price to $468,000. Nationally, 21% of homes sold above their listing price, with listed homes receiving an average of 2.4 offers.
Higher-end homes saw stronger activity. Sales of homes priced over $1 million rose 13.8% year-over-year, while homes between $750,000 and $1 million saw an 8.6% increase. All-cash purchases accounted for 26% of sales, and individual investors or second-home buyers made up 15%. First-time buyers comprised 32% of the market.
Listings Sit Longer, Deals Derail
According to the NAR, homes stayed on the market for an average of 36 days in March, up from 33 days a year ago. Although the average time to close a contract remained at 30 days, 13% of sales experienced delays, up from 10% the year prior.
Some homeowners are enduring even longer wait times. Gallaway remains cautious about lowering his price further.
“If I had to sell it, then of course I would just feed into the death spiral and just drop the price,” he said. “We just don’t need to sell badly enough to capitulate.”
In contrast, McDonough doesn’t have that flexibility. With mounting costs and no sale in sight, the financial burden grows heavier. “We sold [a house] in 2020 and had no problem, even with COVID,” he said. But that was in Phoenix.
A Market in Holding Pattern
As the housing market enters what is typically a busy season, homeowners like Gallaway and McDonough are left navigating a landscape marked by economic anxiety, record prices, and a hesitant buyer pool.
For many, the decision to buy or sell is now tied to more than just location or square footage—it’s about survival in an uncertain economy.
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