As we move closer to 2026, a lot of people are asking the same question: what’s actually going to happen to the housing market?

Will mortgage rates finally come down?
Will home prices correct—or keep climbing?
And is affordability going to improve enough to make buying feel realistic again?

Those are fair questions. And the honest answer is this: the market is shifting—but not in one simple, nationwide way.

The Big Themes Everyone Is Watching

Most forecasts right now are focused on three core factors:

Mortgage rates.
Rates are expected to stabilize compared to the volatility of recent years, but that doesn’t automatically mean they’ll return to historic lows. Even small changes, however, can significantly affect monthly payments and buying power.

Home prices.
Nationally, prices are projected to grow more slowly. Some areas may see flat or modest appreciation, while others—especially high-demand local markets—could continue to rise due to limited inventory.

Affordability.
This is where things get complicated. Affordability isn’t just about prices or rates on their own. It’s about how those factors interact with wages, local demand, and available housing supply.

Why National Headlines Don’t Tell the Full Story

One of the biggest mistakes buyers and sellers make is relying too heavily on national housing news.

Housing is local.
What’s happening in one city—or even one county—can look very different just a few miles away.

Some markets are seeing inventory slowly open up. Others remain extremely tight. Some buyers are gaining leverage, while in other areas, competition hasn’t really cooled at all.

That’s why two people can read the same forecast and have completely different outcomes.

So… Is 2026 the “Right Time”?

There’s no universal answer.

For some people, waiting may make sense.
For others, opportunities are already starting to appear—especially for buyers who understand their local market and plan strategically.

What matters most is clarity: