The Houston housing market continues to demonstrate stability, outperforming national trends in home sales and affordability, according to recent data from the Houston Association of Realtors and local real estate experts. While the United States experienced a 3.6% decline in existing home sales over the past year, the Houston metro area saw a 3.7% increase in single-family home sales. Pending home sales surged over 12% from a year ago, signaling sustained buyer interest.
Despite these gains, median home prices in Houston fell 1.5% to $330,000, and homes stayed on the market longer, with Days on Market increasing by five days to 67 days. However, affordability measures have improved for 17 of the last 20 months, offering optimism for potential buyers. Joe Huber of Alchemist Real Estate noted that price moderation, particularly in Katy where home prices dropped about $12,000 from a year ago, has been encouraging. He attributed the decline to buyers bidding up prices due to limited inventory.
The Houston market has remained more stable compared to the volatile national landscape. The last “normal” year for Houston home sales was 2019, prior to the Covid pandemic. Last month, sales totaled 7,644 units, a 2% increase over 2019, further indicating a steady market. Nationally, existing home sales in 2025 were 24% lower than 2019, after hitting a 14-year high in 2021 and approaching a 30-year low in 2025. National single-family home sales fell from 5.34 million units in 2019 to an estimated 4.06 million in 2025, while median home prices rose from $271,900 to $407,600 over the same period, driven by a persistent supply shortage.
Raymond Campbell of Houston Home Buyers expressed cautious optimism, stating, “The Houston housing market has been a stable part of the Greater Houston economy, and we expect it will slowly gain steam once the Iran war ends and there are declines in mortgage rates and energy prices.” Factors limiting home sales include high mortgage rates, inflation, energy prices, poor consumer confidence, and geopolitical conflicts. Inventory in the Greater Houston area rose 8.7% year-over-year to a 4.7-month supply, slightly above the 4.5 months a year ago and above the national inventory of 3.8 months. The townhome and condominium market lagged, with sales up only slightly and median prices down over 4%, while inventory swelled to 8.2 months from 6.8 months.
Nationally, one-third of all sellers have cut their prices to close deals, one of the highest percentages on record, according to data aggregators. The southern Sun Belt saw the largest price reductions, with Austin leading at 55% of sellers cutting prices, followed by Dallas at 47%, and Tampa and Fort Lauderdale at 45%. Experts attribute this to continued high mortgage rates, lower consumer confidence, and a competitive rental market.
As spring arrives, the most active season for Houston real estate, Campbell noted, “Summer is also active because the kids are out of school. The Iran war will end one way or another and real estate will once again be on the minds of Houston home buyers.” For more information, visit Houston Home Buyers.
