Home Selling Statistics 2026: 80+ Facts, Data & Trends

Last updated: February 9, 2026

Selling a home in today's market requires understanding the forces shaping real estate transactions. From record-long ownership tenure to a historic low in for-sale-by-owner transactions, the selling landscape has shifted dramatically. This resource compiles over 80 verified statistics from authoritative sources including the National Association of REALTORS (NAR), Redfin, U.S. Census Bureau, and Freddie Mac to give home sellers a complete picture of the current market.

Key Statistics at a Glance

Seller Demographics

The profile of home sellers has changed significantly over the past decade. Today's typical seller is older, wealthier, and has lived in their home longer than at any point in recorded history. The lock-in effect of low-interest-rate mortgages is keeping many homeowners in place longer, while those who do sell tend to be motivated by life changes such as retirement or family needs.

Seller Age Trends

The median age of home sellers has reached 64 years, the highest level ever recorded in NAR's annual survey. This reflects a market increasingly dominated by older Americans who have built substantial equity in their homes over decades of ownership.

Ownership Tenure Before Selling

Home sellers have now owned their home for a median of 11 years before selling, an all-time high. The mortgage rate lock-in effect plays a significant role. Many homeowners secured rates below 4% during 2020 and 2021 and are reluctant to trade that for today's rates above 6%.

Among older baby boomers (ages 70 to 78), the median tenure was even longer at 16 years. Younger baby boomers (ages 60 to 69) had a median of 13 years, according to NAR's generational trends report.

Seller Equity and Financial Position

Sellers are entering the market from a position of strength. Years of home price appreciation have built significant equity cushions.

Why Homeowners Sell

The motivations behind selling a home vary widely by age and life stage. According to NAR's 2025 data, the most common reasons sellers cited include wanting to move closer to friends and family, feeling their home was too large or too small, and experiencing a change in family situation.

Top Reasons for Selling by Generation

Additional reasons sellers gave for listing their home include retirement, neighborhood changes, and financial considerations. Many sellers, particularly those who locked in low mortgage rates, need a compelling life reason to give up their current terms.

Pricing and Sale Trends

Home prices reached another all-time high in 2025, with the U.S. median sale price peaking at $446,000 in June according to Redfin. The median price continued to rise on a year-over-year basis, with the median sales price for existing homes staying above 2024 levels in every month. Overall, 2025 sales prices ran about 1.7% higher than 2024 levels, adding roughly $7,400 to the typical sale price.

National Price Data

Price Drops and Seller Adjustments

A growing share of sellers are reducing their asking prices. In August 2025, one in six (16.7%) home sellers dropped their asking price, the highest share for that month in records dating back to 2012 according to Redfin. The typical home that sold in August went for 3.8% less than its original asking price, the steepest discount since 2019.

Most Expensive and Most Affordable Metros for Sellers

Time on Market

Homes are taking longer to sell compared to the pandemic-era frenzy. The median time on market rose to 4 weeks according to NAR's 2025 Profile, up from 3 weeks the prior year. Redfin data shows the median days on market reached 60 days in December 2025, up 6 days year over year.

For Sale By Owner (FSBO) Statistics

For-sale-by-owner transactions hit a historic low of just 5% of all home sales in 2025, according to NAR. The data shows a stark financial disadvantage for FSBO sellers, with significantly lower median sale prices compared to agent-assisted transactions.

FSBO Challenges

FSBO sellers reported several common difficulties, including getting the price right, preparing the home for sale, and selling within their planned timeframe. With only 5% of sales going FSBO, the data suggests that the complexity of modern real estate transactions continues to push sellers toward professional representation.

Real Estate Agent Usage Among Sellers

An overwhelming 91% of home sellers used a real estate agent or broker, matching the highest percentage on record. Sellers value agents primarily for their ability to market the home effectively, price it competitively, and complete the transaction within a specific timeframe.

What Sellers Want From Their Agent

Sellers prioritize three key services when choosing a real estate agent. First, help marketing the home to potential buyers. Second, pricing the home competitively for the local market. Third, selling the home within a specific timeframe. The data shows that 35% of sellers emphasized the agent's reputation as a deciding factor in their selection process.

Seller Concessions

The share of sellers offering concessions to buyers has risen sharply. In the first quarter of 2025, 44.4% of home sale transactions included seller concessions, up from 39.3% a year earlier and approaching the all-time high of 45.1% set in early 2023.

Concession Rates by Metro (Q1 2025)

Common concessions include money toward repairs, closing costs, and mortgage rate buydowns. Redfin agents report that many homes are overpriced, forcing sellers to offer concessions after their listing lingers on the market.

Home Staging Statistics

Home staging continues to show clear benefits for sellers. According to NAR's 2025 Profile of Home Staging, staged homes sell faster and for more money. About 30% of real estate professionals reported that staging boosted home values by 1% to 10%.

Most Important Rooms to Stage

According to NAR's staging survey, real estate agents prioritize staging the following rooms for maximum impact.

1. Living room
2. Primary bedroom
3. Kitchen
4. Dining room
5. Outdoor spaces

Agent-Recommended Improvements Before Listing

More than half of real estate agents suggest these improvements to sellers before listing, even without formal staging.

1. Decluttering the home
2. Full home cleaning
3. Enhancing curb appeal
4. Professional photography
5. Minor repairs
6. Carpet cleaning
7. Depersonalizing spaces
8. Paint touch-ups or repainting
9. Landscaping
10. Removing pets during showings

Generational Trends Among Home Sellers

Baby boomers dominate the seller market, making up 53% of all home sellers in 2025. Their financial strength, built on decades of equity appreciation, gives them significant advantages when it comes to their next home purchase.

Financial Power by Generation

Buyer vs. Seller Market Dynamics

The balance of power between buyers and sellers shifted dramatically in 2025. Weak housing demand, combined with growing housing supply, created a buyer's market that has persisted since May 2024. Lower mortgage rates could eventually bring more first-time buyers back, but the current sales volume remains suppressed. By December 2025, there were a record 47% more sellers than buyers in the U.S. housing market. The months of supply reached 3.3 in December 2025, well below the 5 to 6 months considered a balanced market. Sales of new and existing properties both trailed historical norms.

Strongest Buyer's Markets (December 2025)

Metros with the Highest Price Drop Rates (August 2025)

The Sun Belt was home to the strongest buyer's markets, while the Northeast, Midwest and West housed the remaining seller's markets in December 2025. Sellers in Texas and Florida face the most competition from other listings, driven by years of overbuilding combined with declining demand. Housing affordability remains a challenge across all 50 states, influencing both buying and selling decisions in every metro area. The seasonally-adjusted data shows that transactions on single-family homes, condos and co-ops all tracked below pre-pandemic norms. Even some commercial real estate investors are shifting attention back to residential properties, where the median price has held up better than in some commercial sectors. In markets where asking prices were higher than the median, sellers faced the longest wait times.

Existing-Home Sales Trend

Existing-home sales remained historically slow throughout 2025. An average of 424,078 houses sold every month, similar to 2024 but far below the 2020 rate of 585,000 monthly sales. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the current sales rate of 4.35 million in December 2025 represented a modest improvement from the previous month. Sales increased slightly from November, but the overall pace remained near the lowest end of the typical 4 to 6 million annual range. This slowdown affected all segments of the market, including the single-family home sector. NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun noted that affordability and the 30-year fixed mortgage rate above 6% continued to suppress both pending home sales and closed sales transactions.

What Buyers Prioritize When Purchasing

Understanding what buyers care about helps sellers position their homes effectively. Buyer priorities have shifted significantly over the past decade.

All-Cash Buyers: Impact on Sellers

All-cash home purchases remained at an all-time high of 26% of all transactions. Cash buyers present unique opportunities and challenges for sellers. Cash offers can close faster and with fewer contingencies, making them attractive to sellers who want a quick, certain transaction.

New Residential Sales and New Homes Data

While most sellers are listing existing homes, new residential sales and new home sales also factor into the broader picture. Only 12% of homebuyer transactions in 2025 involved new houses, with the main reason being to avoid renovations. The median price of newly built homes remained higher than existing homes for sale, though builders increasingly offered concessions and incentives to compete for buyers. Quarterly data from the Census Bureau showed new home completions at an annualized rate of 1.6 million as of August 2025, the most recent data available. Price growth for new construction slowed as builders adjusted to weaker demand.

Single-Family Home vs. Condo Selling Dynamics

The single-family segment and the condo and co-op market tell different stories for sellers. Single-family home listings saw more frequent price drops, with 18.3% of single-family listings reducing their asking price in August 2025 compared to 12.8% of condo listings. Condos have struggled for longer, particularly in Florida and Texas, where skyrocketing insurance premiums and HOA fees have driven buyers away. The house price trajectory for single-family detached homes held up better nationally, but sellers in Sun Belt metros saw the median sales price decline year over year.

The home sales report from Redfin noted that luxury home sales fell to their lowest level since at least 2013. Even in the luxury segment, sellers found themselves needing to adjust expectations and pricing strategies to meet buyer demands.

Methodology and Sources

The statistics in this resource are compiled from the following authoritative sources.

• National Association of REALTORS (NAR): 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers (survey period: July 2024 to June 2025), 2025 Generational Trends Report, 2025 Profile of Home Staging, and Existing Home Sales data
• Redfin: 2025 Housing Market Year in Review, buyer vs. seller market analysis, concession data, and price drop analysis based on MLS data
• Virginia REALTORS: Analysis of NAR 2025 Profile data
• CrossCountry Mortgage: Analysis of NAR 2025 Profile data
• Home Staging Institute: Staging ROI and cost data

All statistics reflect the most recent available data as of February 2026. Many of the NAR statistics are based on the 2025 Profile survey, which covered transactions between July 2024 and June 2025. Additional data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and Census Bureau news releases supplements the NAR and Redfin figures referenced in this resource.

Cite This Research

If you use data from this resource, please link back to this page as the source.

Related Resources

• Real Estate Statistics 2026
• First-Time Home Buyer Statistics
• Real Estate Agent Statistics 2026
• Real Estate Commission by State
• Home Prices by State
• How Much Does It Cost to Sell a House
• How Long Does It Take to Sell a House
• How to Find a Real Estate Agent