Homebuyers can now afford $400,000 homes with $2,500 monthly budgets for the first time in four months, according to a new report from Redfin.

Homebuyers are returning, but sellers still aren’t filling the need as inventory remains low.

Homebuyer demand is rising, as mortgage applications rose 28% since November, and more prospective buyers are scheduling home tours.

The median sales price of a new home was down on a monthly basis but up on an annual one. 

Brokers and their clients got a bit of relief in the fourth quarter, as interest rates began to decline. Check out our quarterly Real Data report in collaboration with Midwest Real Estate Data.

House prices, however, continued to rise, marking the 130th consecutive month for price gains, the longest streak on record, the National Association of REALTORS® said.   

More buyers have entered the market in the past four weeks as mortgage rates fell.

The increase in builder confidence breaks a string of 12 straight monthly declines in the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. 

Redfin attributes the drop to the record high mortgage rates, recession concerns, record low inventory, extreme winter weather and the holiday slowdown. 

A record share of sellers are giving buyers concessions including money for repairs and mortgage-rate buydowns.

Geographically, the largest home-price increases took place in the Southeast, led by Florida (18%), South Carolina (13.9%) and Georgia (13.6%), CoreLogic reported, citing its November Home Price Insights report.    

Homes linger on market longer as buyers take their time.

Regionally, the pending-sales index fell 7.9% month over month in the Northeast, 6.6% in the Midwest, 2.3% in the South and 0.9% in the West. 

At the same time, the median sales price of a new house slid to $471,200 from $484,700 in October and $430,300 a year earlier, the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development reported. 

The month-over-month decline in sales came as prices rose for the 129th consecutive month, the National Association of REALTORS® said. 

New-home permits fell 11.2% month over month, while housing completions jumped 10.8% in what one observer said could have “worrisome” long-term consequences for the nation’s housing supply.