DC Real Estate, Market Trends

Think Nobody’s Buying Homes Right Now? Think Again.

What the latest housing data reveals about resilient buyer demand.

If you’ve been thinking about selling, you’ve probably seen plenty of headlines suggesting buyers have just about disappeared. But there’s a big difference between a slow market and a stalled one.

Yes, mortgage rates are still higher than most people would like. Homes aren’t selling as fast as they were. And every week seems to bring another headline about buyers sitting on the sidelines. But here’s what you haven’t heard.

Despite everything going on, buyer demand has been remarkably resilient.

In fact, more sellers are getting to put up the “pending sale” sign now than during the last two years. What’s even more surprising is that they’re doing it at a time of year when activity usually starts to slow down.

And if you’re thinking about selling, that’s a trend worth paying attention to.

Buyers Are More Active Than You Think

One of the best ways to measure buyer demand is by looking at pending home sales. Those are homes that have gone under contract but haven’t closed yet. Think of them as a real-time pulse check on the market and whether buyers are still buying.

HousingWire Data shows more homes are going under contract than at the same time the past 2 years (see graph below):

Line graph showing single-family pending home sales from HousingWire data, comparing month-by-month trends across 2024, 2025, and 2026. The blue 2026 line peaks consistently higher through May, June, and July compared to the previous two years.

HousingWire data shows single-family pending home sales in 2026 are tracking significantly higher than both 2024 and 2025.

Wardman Insight

National headlines love to amplify a slowdown, but our local data tells a completely different story. Serious buyers are accepting current interest rates as the new normal and refuse to put their lives on hold. However, capturing this resilient demand requires precision. Because buyers have options, success hinges on three core pillars: accurate pricing, immaculate staging, and a targeted digital marketing strategy. The buyers are actively out there. If you are ready to stand out and capitalize on this momentum, reach out to the Wardman team today for a custom localized strategy.

While it may come as a surprise, the numbers speak for themselves. It doesn’t mean buyers are everywhere, but it does mean they’re still active right now. And even if this ebbs and flows a bit in the weeks ahead, right now we’re still ahead of where we’ve been lately. That’s encouraging news if you’re thinking about selling because it tells us something important…

People haven’t stopped buying homes. Serious buyers are still making moves.

And a lot of these people are buying because they decided they can’t keep waiting. Whether it’s a growing family, a new job, retirement, or simply wanting a different home, life keeps moving… even when mortgage rates stay higher than we’d like. As Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist at the National Association of Realtors (NAR), explains:

“A late spring buyer rush—even with mortgage rates not budging—is an indication of pent-up housing demand and consumers’ acceptance of above-6% mortgage rates as the new normal.”

So, if you’ve been worried no one’s buying, this data should give you some confidence. Today’s buyers aren’t just casually browsing open houses on a Sunday afternoon, they’ve spent months waiting for rates to improve and now they realize they can’t wait anymore.

That means they have a purposeand a timeline. And that’s exactly the kind of motivated buyer you want to work with.

What This Means for Your Sale

Does that mean every house will sell instantly? No.

Today’s market is more balanced than it was a few years ago. So, you can’t just price your house however you want or skip preparing it for the market.

Now buyers have choices, and they’re willing to wait for the right home at the right price. But sellers who understand today’s market (and price and position their homes right) are still finding success. Because the idea that “no one’s buying right now” just isn’t supported by the data.

The buyers are there.

The opportunity is there.

The key is having the right strategy to capture it.

Bottom Line

While this year’s housing market may be moving at a more deliberate pace than many anticipated, buyer demand is proving to be far more resilient than the negative headlines suggest. The transactions are happening, the demand is real, and the momentum is already here. If you are wondering whether there are enough active buyers in the market to successfully sell your house, you don’t have to guess.

If you’re ready to stop watching the national headlines and start looking at the local numbers that actually matter for your move, let’s start a conversation. Reach out to your Wardman Residential team member today for a personalized analysis of your buying power and a localized strategy tailored to your neighborhood. We are committed to helping you move forward with absolute confidence, ensuring you have the data-driven expertise and deep local insight needed to secure your next home entirely on your terms.

Courtesy of Keeping Current Matters

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