Housing Market Update: Lower Prices and Interest Rates Boost Buyer Opportunities

Economic data released this week offered the latest insight into trends and sentiment in the U.S. regarding inflation, manufactured housing data, and interest rates.

Inflation

According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Survey of Consumer Expectations, the recent inflation data indicates the following:

• Inflation expectations: People expect inflation to stay about the same—3.2% over the next year and 3.0% over the next three to five years.
• Uncertainty: Confidence about future inflation hasn’t changed much for the short and medium term, but uncertainty dropped slightly for the five-year outlook.
• Home prices: Expectations for home price growth remain steady at 3.0%, holding firm for the sixth month in a row.

Manufactured Housing Survey

According to the Manufactured Housing Survey’s latest data, the average sales price of new manufactured homes by region from May to June 2025 shows:

• In the Northeast, total (single- and multi-section) home prices are down by $8,300
• In the Midwest, total (single- and multi-section) home prices are down by $2,000
• In the South, total (single- and multi-section) home prices are down by $1,400
• In the West, total (single- and multi-section) home prices are down by $6,800
• Overall in the U.S. total (single- and multi-section) home prices are down by $1,700

Interest Rates

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter point on Wednesday, December 10 as expected, lowering borrowing costs for the third time this year.

This lowered the federal funds rate to a range of 3.50% to 3.75%. This is the lowest federal funds rate since November 2022 — opening up the potential for more affordable borrowing options for homebuyers.