Are home sales entering a buyers market? What these real estate changes show in Tennessee
Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic, the housing market has had its ups and downs, but it seems to be changing again.
Ahead of the 2025 summer selling season, home prices are expected to slow, low mortgage lock-ins will ease and the power may transition from the sellers to the buyers. It's still early in the season to say precisely what will happen, but this is what the experts predict to see in the coming months.
Here is what the experts say about the summer real estate market.
In general, homes are more expensive than in the past decade or so. Homeowners had record levels of home equity in 2024, but it's increasingly challenging for buyers, especially first-timers, to break into the market.
But prices are falling back to earth now, and this may continue. The Mortgage Bankers Association expects prices to rise only 1.3% in 2025, while Fannie Mae economists forecast a 4.1% price gain.
It is also expected that previous buyers who avoided purchasing new homes due to high mortgage rates will be less reluctant to take on a new mortgage.
As of the fourth quarter of 2024, the most recent national data available, 72% of all outstanding mortgages had a rate below 6%, and more than half had a rate below 4%. For many people, moving and taking on a new mortgage at the prevailing rates of 6%-7% was hard to contemplate unless necessary.
Whatever the reason, buyers have a lot more options now. Realtor.com data shows that there were 28,370 Tennessee active listings in April, almost 40% higher than April last year. The median home price had also dropped 1.9% from April last year.
Data from Realtor.com and Redfin show that sellers are making more price cuts due to homes staying on the market longer. In April, 18% of home listings had price reductions, the highest April share in Realtor.com data going back to at least 2016.
According to Redfin, the market in Tennessee is changing much like the analysis expects. Median house sales prices are up 3.2% compared to last year, but sales are down 4%.
In February last year, houses sold for a median price of $368,500, and now they are selling for a median price of $380,200. Last February, 5,911 homes were sold in Tennessee, and 5,675 homes were sold in 2025.
Realtor.com showed the median home price dropping 1.9% year over year in April to $434,950. This same price is up 1.7% from March.
Redfin found another increase for homes in Tennessee was the amount of time spent on the market, which just hit a five-year high. In February, homes sold spent a median of 78 days on the market. The most recent peak for time spent on the market was in February 2024, when homes spent a median of 73 days.
Reatlor.com found that homes spent a median of 52 days on the market in April, which was down 7% from March and up 22% from April 2024.
In Tennessee, Redfin found the number of homes for sale is up 13.2% year over year, with a total of 35,657 homes for sale in February. Realtor.com showed a 38% increase in the year over year active listings at 28,370.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Real estate turning into a buyers market in 2025? What to know in TN
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