Published November 1, 2026 in Market Update

More listings are back, but buyers are still showing up

By Tamika R. Johnson, MBA, Associate Broker

Real estate, Primary buy box (2)

Here is the number that changes what a seller should do right now. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 1,228 homes for sale across Baltimore, Columbia, Odenton, Edgewater, Hyattsville, Temple Hills, District Heights, Suitland, and Capitol Heights in the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is up 14.8% from the same period in 2025. More supply means buyers have options. That shifts leverage, even in a market where demand has not collapsed.

The critical point: buyers did not disappear. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 1,314 pending sales across the same area in those three months, up 0.5% from 2025. Demand held. But when supply grows faster than demand, pricing and preparation matter more. Buyers have something they did not have last year: a backup option.

Freddie Mac put the 30-year fixed rate at 7.24% as of October 29, 2026. That is the cost of borrowing sitting on every buyer's shoulder. Realtor.com reported that mortgage rates climbed above 7% for the first time since January 2025. Higher rates slow decisions. When buyers move more slowly and inventory is growing, a home that is priced right and shows well still sells. One that is not, sits.

What this looks like ZIP by ZIP

The market is not one thing. Columbia's 21045 and 21044 still saw more than half of homes sell above list price. Odenton's 21113 had nearly half go under contract within two weeks. Those are different conditions than Baltimore's 21216 or Hyattsville's 20782, where days on market stretched longer and fewer homes closed above asking. The numbers below show the range.

Speed: where homes are moving fast and where they are not

Days on market went up in almost every ZIP. That is not a crisis, but it is a signal. Odenton's 21113 still moved at a median 33 days. Columbia's 21046 was 22 days. Baltimore's 21216 sat at 69 days, 13 days longer than the same period last year. Hyattsville's 20782 stretched to 67 days, 16 more than 2025. Longer days on market means buyers are taking their time. Price a home wrong and that time becomes a problem.

Are buyers still paying above asking?

In most ZIPs, yes, but fewer of them. Columbia's 21045 led with 52.8% of homes selling above list price. The 21044 ZIP in Columbia followed at 48.4%, actually up 2.7 points from last year. Odenton's 21113 came in at 39.3%. At the other end, Baltimore's 21216 saw only 22.1% sell above list, down nearly 10 points from 2025. Hyattsville's 20783 was 20.5%. The sale-to-list ratio still topped 100% in most ZIPs, which tells you that well-priced homes are still closing at or above asking. But the gap between a well-priced home and an overpriced one is wider now.

What the national picture adds

The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that U.S. home prices rose 2.4% from August 2025 to August 2026, and 0.3% from July to August alone. Prices nationally are still moving up, just slowly. That matches what the Real Estate Data Aggregator shows here: some ZIPs are up, some are down, none are in freefall. Realtor.com reported that price cuts hit 20.8% of listings nationally in September 2026, the highest share since October 2022. That is a reminder of what happens when a home is priced above where the market actually is.

The data covers the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is the period these numbers describe, and it is worth keeping in mind as you read them against today's conditions.