Redfin Corp Stock Price, News & Analysis

Redfin (NASDAQ: RDFN) reports that 33.6% of U.S. renters have lived in their homes for at least five years, up from 28.4% a decade ago. This trend is driven by soaring home purchase costs and high moving expenses. 25.6% of renters move within 12 months, while 40.8% move between 1-4 years.

The analysis shows geographical variations, with Denver (38%), Austin (37.8%), and Salt Lake City (36.9%) having the highest percentage of renters moving within 12 months. Conversely, New York (14.9%), Los Angeles (16.7%), and Riverside (18.9%) show the lowest mobility rates. Notably, rental tenure patterns vary by generation, with 34.1% of baby boomers staying in the same home for 10+ years, while 52.4% of Gen Z renters moved within a year.

Redfin (NASDAQ: RDFN) reports that active housing listings increased 12% year-over-year during the four weeks ending December 22, 2024, marking the smallest increase since March. The median sale price rose 6% to $383,725, while pending sales declined 3.4%, marking the first drop in three months. The housing market shows mixed signals with a median monthly mortgage payment of $2,519 at a 6.85% rate, up 7.1% year-over-year.

Regional variations are significant, with Philadelphia leading price increases at 17.1%, while markets like San Antonio saw the largest declines in pending sales (-17.4%) and new listings (-18.3%). The market currently shows 4 months of supply, with homes spending a median of 45 days on market, 6 days longer than the previous year.

U.S. home prices increased 0.5% month-over-month in November 2024, marking the third consecutive month with this growth rate. Year-over-year prices rose 5.7%, the lowest annual increase since October 2023 and the sixth straight month of slowing annual price growth.

Among the 50 most populous U.S. metros, 13 (26%) saw seasonally adjusted price drops in November. Fort Lauderdale and Tampa, Florida experienced the largest declines (-1.1% each), while Nassau County, NY recorded the highest gain (1.6%). According to Redfin Senior Economist Sheharyar Bokhari, home prices are expected to continue rising steadily throughout 2025, driven by competition over housing inventory due to homeowners retaining their low mortgage rates.

Redfin reports a significant surge in home sales in West Coast markets, with Portland, OR leading at a 27.6% year-over-year increase in November, the highest among the top 50 U.S. metros. Other notable increases were seen in San Jose (26.2%), Seattle (19.5%), San Francisco (17.7%), Sacramento (17.6%), and San Diego (15.2%). Nationwide, home sales rose by 4.8%. These markets have median sale prices above the national median of $430,107. New listings in Portland decreased by 20.3%, the most significant drop after Austin, TX. New listings in Oakland, San Jose, and Sacramento also fell more than the national average of 6.6%. In the Bay Area, over half of the homes sold for more than their asking price, with San Jose at 58.6% and San Francisco at 52.9%. Nationwide, 26.6% of homes sold above their list price. The median sale prices in San Jose and San Francisco are $1.5 million.

Redfin's recent survey reveals that homeowners with children are significantly more likely to receive family financial assistance for housing costs. 25% of recent homebuyers with kids received family gifts for down payments, compared to 12% without kids. Similarly, 17% of homeowners with children get help with mortgage payments versus 8% without kids.

The survey shows that homeowners with kids are more likely to pursue various payment methods, including side hustles (23% vs 12%) and early retirement fund withdrawals (14% vs 9%). They also prioritize larger homes with more features, with 68% considering indoor space a 'must-have' compared to 60% of childless homeowners.

Redfin (NASDAQ: RDFN) reports a significant 7.6% year-over-year increase in new home listings for the four weeks ending December 15, marking the second-largest rise since June. This surge is attributed to high home prices (up 6% YoY), improved consumer confidence, and increased homebuyer demand.

The Redfin Homebuyer Demand Index shows a 9% YoY increase, reaching near its highest level since August 2023. Mortgage-purchase applications are up 18% month-over-month, while pending home sales rose 4.1%. The weekly average mortgage rate has declined for three consecutive weeks to 6.6%, though daily rates recently exceeded 7% following the Fed's announcement of fewer rate cuts than expected for 2025.

Existing home sales rose 0.7% month over month in November to 4,269,851 units (seasonally adjusted annual rate), marking the highest level since March 2023. Sales jumped 4.5% year over year, the largest annual increase since July 2021. The median home sale price increased 5.4% year over year to $430,107, while mortgage rates averaged 6.81%. Despite improved activity, new listings fell 1.6% month over month and 4.8% year over year, though active listings rose 0.5% monthly. The market showed regional variations, with Philadelphia leading price gains (19.2%) and Portland showing the highest sales growth (27.6%). Experts attribute the uptick to reduced election uncertainty and buyers adapting to elevated mortgage rates.

Redfin (NASDAQ: RDFN) reports that older Americans are more likely to purchase homes in climate-risk areas compared to younger buyers. The study reveals that 36.9% of home purchases by people aged 65+ were in counties with high extreme heat risk, versus 32.3% for buyers under 35. Similar patterns emerge for flood risk (13.3% vs 9.8%) and fire risk (3.7% vs 2.6%).

This trend is attributed to popular retirement destinations like Florida and Arizona, which face significant climate risks but offer attractive benefits such as no retirement income tax. The analysis also shows that in counties where 65+ buyers are most active, 96.2% of homes face high heat risk, compared to 59.2% in areas preferred by younger buyers.

Redfin reports that asking rents for newly built apartments increased by 1.5% to a median of $1,802 in Q3 2024, marking the largest year-over-year rise in 18 months. This increase follows two quarters of 7%+ declines. Regional variations show the West experiencing the highest rent growth at 4.4%, despite a 34.1% increase in new apartment completions, while the Northeast saw a 3.6% decline.

The apartment absorption rate stands at 52%, meaning just over half of newly constructed apartments were rented within three months of completion. This represents a return to pre-pandemic levels and is down from 54% in the previous quarter. The national rental vacancy rate for buildings with 5+ units reached 8% in Q3, the highest since Q1 2021, indicating supply exceeding demand.