The COVID pandemic impacted several aspects of the housing market in the US. Mortgage rates plunged to record lows, and the price of homes increased dramatically. As a result, Americans bought larger homes in record numbers.
People were relocating to suburbs from big cities even before COVID, the pandemic, however, accelerated this process. In many instances, people could do jobs remotely, increasing a trend away from inner-city living.
The pandemic is a good example of circumstances coming together to push housing market prices to historical highs, and they've remained elevated without any indication of a drop.
Since March 2020, the pandemic's start, the median price of homes sold by Realtors has increased by 29 percent, from $280,700 to $362,800. The price has remained steady at $350,000 since then.
Lawrence Yun, the National Association of Realtors' chief economist, predicts a temporary drop in home sales after a spectacular year for housing in 2021 and 2020.