The national housing market entered spring stronger, helped by better affordability and rebuilding inventory, even as 30-yr mortgage rates rebounded from early-2026 lows.
Annual home price growth was 0.4% in Late-Q1, while Mid-Q1 and Late-Q1 posted the strongest seasonally adjusted monthly gains in nearly 12 mo.
Affordability still improved yearly despite rates rising ~0.4 points since late Mid-Q1, which cut buying power ~4% from early-2026 peaks.
Inventory ↑8% yearly in Late-Q1, but active listings stayed 11% below typical 2017–2019 levels. Four in 10 markets matched or exceeded pre-pandemic supply.
Refinance incentives weakened sharply. Higher rates cut borrowers considered in the money by ~60% from recent highs, while homeowner lock-in looked likely to ease gradually.
Mortgage stress also ticked higher: delinquency reached ~3.7% in Mid-Q1, and ~878K loans were severely delinquent or in foreclosure, highest since Mid-2018 excluding pandemic effects.
Price firming broadened, but
Spring Market Starts on Firmer Footing | Carol Strom real estate broker. Founder of USAfitpros.com 50 state Telehealth and Labs bolt-on virtual LegitScript business
