The number of US homebuyers hit a record low in July, pushing the housing market further in buyers' favor amid ongoing macro uncertainty, Redfin said.
Homebuyers dropped 2.5% sequentially to an all-time low of 966,752 last month, according to the online real estate brokerage. The number of sellers fell 0.3% to about 1.46 million, marking a one-year low, the report showed.
Sellers surpassed buyers by 51.3% in July, hovering just below December's all-time high of 51.8%, Redfin said. The gap last month widened from 47.9% in June.
"Buyers are dropping out faster than sellers, giving the buyers who remain more options and more negotiating power," Redfin Senior Economist Asad Khan said in a statement Thursday. "At the same time, uncertainty around whether the (Federal Reserve) will hike rates -- and this summer's rising mortgage rates -- are keeping many would-be buyers on the sidelines."
In July, 39 of the 49 US metros tracked by Redfin were buyers' markets, led by Miami. There were only six seller's markets, with Nassau County, New York, being the strongest, the report showed.
Homebuying demand fell last month largely due to a surge in mortgage rates to one-year highs, along with widespread economic uncertainty, according to the report.
"Buyers have leverage, while motivated sellers may be willing to negotiate before the early-fall rush brings some buyers back to the market," Khan said. "This could be the best chance for buyers and sellers to meet in the middle."
Earlier in the week, National Association of Realtors data showed that existing home sales in the US fell more than expected last month as rising prices and mortgage rates continued to weigh on homebuying activity. Separately, Redfin said that US home sales in July hit the lowest level in almost two years amid near-record prices, high mortgage rates and economic instability.
