Is a Buyer’s Market Finally Here? What to Expect in 2025

For the last several years, the housing market has been marked by intense bidding wars, record-high home prices, and an inventory shortage that has given sellers virtually all of the power.

However, it looks like the US housing market is on the brink of a major reset that could shift the power from seller to buyer. A housing supply that’s rising slowly but steadily, high mortgage rates, and a housing supply increase are shifting the balance of power.

While the housing market reset 2025 won’t happen overnight, signs of a more buyer-friendly market are on the horizon. Keep reading to find out more about what you can expect, including some home prices 2025 forecast information, information about mortgage rate trends, and more.

More Sellers, Fewer Buyers: The Shift Begins

According to reports, May 2025 saw 34% more sellers than buyers, a discrepancy that caused a surplus of 500,000 homes on the market. That’s a major shift from recent years when homebuyers were battling it out for a handful of listings and sellers were choosing between multiple offers that came in above asking price.

The current imbalance represents a shift that is great news for buyers. Homes are staying on the market longer, which has forced sellers to evaluate and adjust their expectations, either by lowering asking prices or accepting offers that are below the asking price. This is a drastic change from the days of the pandemic-era housing boom, when many properties were snatched up in days.

Realtor.com, along with multiple economists, believes that we’re getting ready to see the first buyer-friendly summer that the housing market has witnessed in years. While the market still hasn’t crossed completely into a buyer’s market, things taking a buyer-friendly turn is certainly a step in the right direction for people who have been waiting to make a home purchase.

Is It Really a Buyer’s Market?

You can find some experts who say that we’re already in a buyer’s market, but the validity of that statement depends on how you define the phrase.

Traditionally, the housing market isn’t considered a buyer’s market until the housing supply reaches six months or more, which means it would take six or more months to sell every home on the market at the current pace. As of May 2025, the housing inventory was at 4.4 months, slightly below the six-month mark.

Still, this figure represents a major improvement when compared to recent years. Danielle Hale, Chief Economist at Realtor.com, says that this summer might be the most buyer-friendly period that the US has seen in nearly 10 years.

“We’re moving from a pretty seller-friendly housing market to one with more balance,” she noted. “This is consistent with the Realtor.com 2025 forecast predicting the first balanced market since 2016.”

In a technical sense, we’re not in a buyer’s market, at least not yet. Still, conditions are more favorable for buyers than they’ve been in quite some time, and some of the leading names in the industry believe that it will continue to shift in that direction in the coming months.

Housing Supply Is Finally Catching Up

For years, a chronic shortage of available homes fueled skyrocketing prices. The laws of supply and demand dictate every market, including real estate. When there aren’t many homes for sale, those houses that are available are worth more than usual because there’s less competition.

However, inventory is now increasing, which is bringing prices down. Even traditionally competitive regions like the Northeast and the Pacific Coast are seeing more listings hit the market.

According to Hale, the number of available homes is on pace to exceed pre-COVID levels from 2019. The total value of unsold homes in the US is already over $700 billion. If this trend continues, we might be looking at a multi-year housing reset where supply finally meets, or even exceeds, demand.

This is huge news for buyers. Not only could this lead to lower prices, but it also means that they can stop making snap decisions. When there are plenty of homes available, you no longer have to try to beat other buyers to the closing table.

Price Cuts Are Becoming the Norm

Price reductions are another sign that the market is changing. In March, 24% of Zillow listings saw a price cut, which is atypical during the beginning of what’s traditionally peak buying season. According to Hale, this is a sign of an even more dramatic shift.

She says, “Homes will likely take longer to sell, and price cuts, whether listed directly or through negotiation, will become more common.”

With price cuts becoming more common, what’s holding back a full shift? Mortgage rates, which are still high, are primarily responsible for keeping the market from changing completely. Additionally, wages still aren’t keeping up with home prices, as many buyers are priced out of desirable neighborhoods. Finally, some sellers are still holding out, unwilling to adjust their prices or make certain concessions.

Eventually, the market will largely correct itself based on the principle of supply and demand. However, these three obstacles can certainly slow the shift to a buyer’s market.

Prepare for a More Balanced Market

Unlike the housing market in 2007, which greatly favored buyers, there’s no reason to assume that today’s market will crash at the end of its current cycle. Instead, you can reasonably expect that the market is going to stabilize.

When the dust settles, a normalized market should result in a better balance between buyers and sellers as homes start coming off the market at prices that work for everyone.