S&P Dow Jones Indices noted that inflation outpaced national home-price appreciation for the 11th month in a row. 

Home sales in the 51 metro areas surveyed by REMAX rose 7.9% month over month and slid 0.5% year over year. 

The increase was driven by refinancing activity as purchase applications dipped. 

The 3.8% month-over-month gain was almost four times what industry observers were expecting. 

Inventory rose 3.3% month over month and 0.6% year over year to 1.55 million homes, which equals a 4.5-month supply of unsold inventory, NAR said. 

Nationwide, it takes six years to break even on homeownership, down from an all-time high of 8.4 years in 2023.

Amid what Realtor.com called the most active spring in years, the housing market is finding a new equilibrium.

Looking ahead, Cotality expects home prices to rise 5.3% between April 2026 and April 2027. 

The median sales price of new homes sold in April rose 8% to $422,500 from $391,100 in March, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development reported.

Home prices continued to rise across the country in March, but the rate of increase slowed yet again, according to the latest S&P Cotality Case-Shiller Home Price Index. 

The pace of closed sales is only expected to increase through the summer, Illinois REALTORS® said. 

Despite a monthly decline, the rate of new-home construction still came in above consensus estimates. 

Among the top 50 metro areas, Boston and Miami led the pack. 

The median-existing sales price for all housing types rose 0.9% year over year to $417,700, its 34th consecutive increase. 

Nationally, home sales in the 50 metro areas surveyed by REMAX posted their largest monthly gain in three years, increasing 31.6%. 

The 2026 spring housing market is neither surging nor stalled, but moving forward as both buyers and sellers adjust their expectations.