The 2026 real estate outlook from the National Association of REALTORS(R) was released in January.

Multiple economists associated with NAR and other Real Estate organizations all agree that they believe that the 2026 real estate market shows signs that a rebound is in the works, as well as a rebalance of the market. A number of them came together to share their thoughts with NAR.

Lawrence Yun, NAR Chief Economist believes that the 2026 real estate market in the US will show a minimal home price growth of about 2-3% over 2025. He also sees more inventory for homebuyers to be able to choose from.

Robert Dietz, National Association of Home Builders chief economist foresees new construction pricing being less than resale when coupled with builder incentives, depending on location and demand, of course. He sees that even though inventory is increasing in many areas, there is still a very large deficit of available housing for the current population. He also sees a shift in where new construction is popular – Midwest vs the South, which is seeing a slowdown in new home sales.

Danielle Hale, Realtor.com® Chief Economist sees more sellers removing their homes from the market or reducing their asking prices. She said that using NAR data, she views the current housing market as being the most balanced it’s been for almost a decade. She does foresee, though that home prices will rise about 2% in 2026, but that mortgage rates are expected to be lower, which could offset some of that growth for home buyers and make homes, in general, more affordable.

Jessica Lautz, NAR Deputy Chief Economist said she sees a growing group of single female homebuyers. She hopes to see more first time homebuyers entering the market with lower interest rates in 2026. See sees that Baby Boomers will still dominate the housing market mostly due to their housing wealth and ability to make moves on their terms.

Nadia Evangelou, NAR Senior Economist says that a one percentage-point drop in mortgage rates can expand the number of people who can qualify to buy a home by about 5.5 million households nationwide. She said this includes about 1.6 million renters who could potentially become first time homebuyers in 2026.

These views are on the Nationwide real estate market. The Baltimore real estate outlook for 2026 may be different than the Nationwide outlook. Your Baltimore home value may differ than another Baltimore neighborhood. If you have been considering buying or selling a Baltimore home, please contact me. I would love to help!