Buyer Demand Swelling

Spring has sprung, in terms of homebuyer demand, following the recent slide in mortgage interest rates during the stock market selloff and partial government shutdown.

Dallas-based real estate agent Laura Barnett says that the sudden upswing in buyer demand "kind of caught us a little bit off guard," telling CNBC, "We actually did get a surge of buyers coming in. And, matter of fact, I worked with two this weekend, one of which is under contract, another is about to be." Supply is growing on the market as well, as the national median days on market also increases.

The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage rose throughout much of 2018, hitting a recent peak in November at just more than 5 percent. Rates had been in the 3 percent range throughout 2016 and 2017, which helped produce the run-up in home prices. When rates began rising again last year, the combination of high prices and higher rates took its toll on sales, which fell sharply in the second half of last year to the lowest level in several years.

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