What happened to home prices in Q4 2025?

Home prices were up in 168 of 230 metro markets during the final quarter of 2025, a report released today by the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) said.

The report also stated that the national median price for single-family existing homes was $414,900, up 1.2% from the previous year.

While home prices rose in three of the four major regions the NAR report looks at, they did drop slightly in the West.

“Home sales squeaked out a gain in the final quarter of 2025, helped by improving affordability conditions,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said. “Mortgage rates fell, income growth outpaced home price growth and the income required to buy a typical home declined.”

Where did home prices change the most in Q4 2025?

On a region-by-region basis, the U.S. housing market saw the following changes in median home prices:

“While most metro markets continue to see record-high housing wealth, some areas are experiencing home price declines,” Yun said. “These declining markets are concentrated primarily in Florida and Texas, where robust supply and recent home construction are increasing competition among sellers to attract buyers.”

Which metros saw the largest changes in home prices?

All of the top 10 metro areas with the largest year-over-year increase in median home price increases were in the Midwest, Northeast and South, the NAR report said. The metro areas with the biggest changes were:

The NAR report also detailed the 10 most expensive metro markets for single-family homes. Of the 10 most expensive metro markets, eight of them for the fourth quarter of 2025 were in California. Topping the list was San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California, with an average home price of $1,920,000, which is no change from last year.

How about housing affordability in Q4 2025?

While median existing single-family home prices have increased from the same time the previous year, they were down slightly from the third quarter of 2025.

The monthly mortgage payment on a typical existing single-family home with a 20% down payment was $2,057. This was down 5.7% from the previous quarter and down 3.1% from the same time last year.

Families typically spend 22.9% of their income on mortgage payments, down 1.6% from 2025’s previous quarter and down 1.8% from a year ago.

First-time homebuyers did see a drop in prices for starter homes compared to the third quarter of 2025 as well as a decrease compared to the same time the previous year. The monthly mortgage for a typical starter home valued at $352,700 with a 10% down payment in the final quarter of 2025 was $2,019. This monthly mortgage was down $122 from last quarter but up $62 from a year ago.

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