Home sellers have had the upper h💧and for several years as low inventory has ⭕boosted competition and home values have risen rapidly— but these roles may reverse in 2025.

“We are probably at the point now where the market feels as close to a buyer's market as it has this side of the pandemic,” said Ralph McLaughlin, senior economist at Realtor.com

More homeowners are expected to list their homes and return to the housing market in the new year as mortgage rates stabilize and home price growth slows. While more listings on the market will lessen competition, sellers should have an easier time finding a buyer.

You Will Likely See a Small🌟er Rise In Home Value

Homeowners have benefited from a rapid increase in home prices over the past few years as the🌱 housing market faced low inventory and in💃tense competition.

According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the typical homeowner has accuꦍmulated $147,000 in housing value o🐎ver the last five years.

However, forecasts expect this to slow down in 2025 as activity in the housing market picks back up. Realtor.com foresees prices growing by 3.7% compared to this year's 4.0% growth.

Sellers May Have to Be More Flexible in the New Year🅺

Someﷺ homeowners have felt stuck in the ultra-low mortgage rate they locked in ꧋during the pandemic.

Many have resisted listing their homes so they don't have to get a new mortgage with a rate that can be up to twice as much interest as what they're currently paying. However, mortgage rates are expected to stabilize at around 6% in 2025, which will encourage reluctant sellers to return, said Lawrence Yun, chief economist at NAR.

"The lock-in effect certainly becomes less powerful once the spread between their current mortgage rate and what the market is offering begins to narrow," Yun said.

As more houses enter the market, competition should ease. That means sellers must be flexible going into 2025, as buyers will start to have the upper hand, economists said. McLaughlin predicts that more buyers will demand price cuts or concessions toward rate buy-downs. Still, sellers can help keep up their homes' value by renovating them with useful additions and improving their curb appeal.

"Landscaping, which would include things like a deck or paving...that tends to have a pretty decent return on investment, at least when it comes to listing price," McLaughlin said.

It Should Be Easier to Sell Your Home

Sellers who have struggled t💛o find a buyer may finally🐻 be able to seal the deal in 2025 as more buyers are expected to enter the market.

Many consumers will also be entering prime-homebuying age next year, said Joel Kan, vice president and deputy chief economist at Mortgage Bankers Association. In addition, potential homebuyers are facing life-changing events such as diꦅvorce, children, marriage, or a new job, forcing them back onto the market.

Sellers could also find it easier to sell smaller homes as buyers have increasingly leaned into smaller homes in an attempt to live more sustainably and affordably. According to Zillow, the term "cozy," which has often had a negative connotation, appeared in the listing description 35% more in 2024 compared to the year before.

The fact that buyers no longer face uncertainty about the result of t𒉰he 2024 presi𝔉dential election should also help bring some back to the market.

“We’ve seen after presidential elections—and it doesn’t matter who wins—that there’s u꧃sually a slight boost in home sales,” Yun said in a statement. “Now you know it’s the policy [of incoming President Donald Trump], and you can make predictions about what will happen and make a decision based on that.”