According to Zillow’s March 2026 market report, the U.S. housing market remained more active than many expected, even as mortgage rates moved higher again. Pending home sales increased sharply, home values continued to rise modestly, and housing inventory kept growing. In March alone, 281,546 homes newly went under contract, making it the second-highest monthly total since August 2022. That figure was up 4.6% compared with the same time last year and up 29.8% from February. Zillow interpreted this as a clear sign that the spring housing market has started in earnest. However, the stronger market activity was not driven by lower rates alone. Zillow noted that several factors helped boost the market in March, including pent-up demand after three years of relatively weak sales activity, delayed moves following winter storms in January and February, and the benefit of somewhat lower mortgage rates earlier in the year. Still, by late March, mortgage rates had climbed from 5.98% at the end of February…

In recent real estate headlines, the phrase “buyer’s market” has been appearing more often. According to recent reports, the number of sellers is now clearly exceeding the number of buyers nationwide, and as a result, negotiating power is gradually shifting toward buyers. In today’s Korea Daily article, for example, the Los Angeles market was described as having 52.6% more sellers than buyers, showing that buyer-friendly conditions are becoming more visible not only in LA but across the country. The article also noted that, in many parts of the national market, a growing share of homes is selling below list price. However, one important point to keep in mind is that the national trend does not necessarily reflect what is happening in New Jersey. Looking at statewide New Jersey data, as of February 2026, the median sale price for single-family homes rose 5.3% year over year to $558,000, while the average sale price increased to $717,314. At the same time, single-family inventory…