Delistings Jump 28% as Sellers Pull Homes Off Market Rather Than Settle for Low Prices

Redfin reports the number of home listings that were pulled off the market rose to a historically high level in September. Many homeowners would rather stay put than accept a low offer, and this increase in delistings is propping up home prices.

Nearly 85,000 U.S. sellers took their homes off the market in September, up 28% from a year earlier and the highest level for that month in eight years, according to a new report from Redfin, the real estate brokerage powered by Rocket.

Delistings Have Been Rising For a Year and a Half

This September is compared to past Septembers because delistings are seasonal, peaking in the winter months. But looking back over the last few years shows that delistings have been rising since spring 2024, with year-over-year growth in delistings peaking at 39% in June 2025. They also surged in 2022, when mortgage rates rose from pandemic-era lows and homebuying demand dropped.

There are several reasons more sellers are pulling their homes off the market:

1. Surge in stale listings. 7 in 10 (70%) U.S. home listings were "stale" in September, meaning they had been on the market for at least 60 days without going under contract. The typical home that was delisted in September had been on the market for 100 days before the seller pulled it off the market. Stale listings have been elevated for the last several years because there are half a million more home sellers than buyers in the market. Many sellers are pulling their homes off the market rather than letting them linger, and/or potentially cutting their price.
2. Slow demand. Listings are going stale because of slow homebuying demand. Would-be buyers are sidelined by high mortgage rates, high home prices, and widespread economic uncertainty; for instance, many Americans reported delaying a major purchase like a home or car due to the government shutdown.
3. Sellers don't want to take a loss. Roughly 15% of the homes that were delisted in September were at risk of selling at a loss, the highest share in five years. Many of those sellers likely made the difficult decision to pull their home off the market because they weren't willing to lose money.
4. The option to become a landlord. Some would-be sellers would rather pull their home off the market and rent it out than sell for less money than they want. Many of them would consider listing their home again when the housing market picks up.
5. More total listings. Active U.S. listings rose 8% year over year in September to their highest level for that month since 2019. When there are more homes on the market, there are more homes being taken off the market.

Delistings Are Also Rising as a Share of All Listings

Delistings are increasing faster than overall listings are increasing. Nationwide, 5.5% of all home listings were taken off the market in September. That's the highest September share since at least 2016, and it's up from 4.8% a year earlier.

"That increase is bigger than it looks on paper; it represents a fairly significant jump in delistings from last year," said Asad Khan, a senior economist at Redfin. "More sellers are giving up because their homes have been sitting on the market for a long time, and they don't want to or can't afford to settle on accepting a low price."

Uptick in Delistings Is Propping Up Home Prices

The total number of U.S. homes for sale was up 8% year over year in September, pending home sales were down roughly 2%, and much of the country is firmly a buyer's market. That combination would typically lead to lower sale prices—but prices are still rising, up about 2% year over year.

The increase in delistings helps explain why prices are rising despite tepid homebuying demand.

"The frequency of delistings is keeping inventory tighter than it looks on paper," Khan said. "Many homes have a sticker price higher than buyers are willing to pay, but many sellers are unwilling to negotiate. When tens of thousands of homeowners pull their homes off the market rather than accept a low offer, it effectively reduces the supply of homes that are actually available for buyers. That keeps sale prices elevated."

Note that many prospective sellers are deciding against listing altogether, rather than putting their home on the market then pulling it off. New listings of U.S. homes for sale are stagnant, with many would-be sellers taking note of tepid demand and staying put.

"Some prospective sellers are opting not to list at all, and others are taking their home off the market if it's not getting the price they want," said Aditi Jain, a Redfin Premier agent in Boston. "Sellers aren't motivated because, frankly, it's no longer a great time to sell; today's listings are getting one or two offers at best, compared to 10 a few years ago. They'd rather rent out their home than sell for a low price, and people who don't need to move now are opting to stay put and re-list in a year or two."

1 in 5 Homes That Are Delisted Are Re-Listed

Roughly one in five homes that were delisted over the summer were re-listed within three months: 20% of homes that were pulled off the market in July were subsequently re-listed, as were 18% of homes that were pulled in June.

Delisting is sometimes used as a selling strategy; some sellers take their homes off the market and subsequently relist at a lower price to avoid house hunters seeing a "price drop" on their listing, and to reset the number of days their home has been on the market. Of the homes that were delisted in July then put back on the market, 31.6% of them have sold.

People Who Purchased Their Home Recently Are Most Likely to Pull It Off the Market

Roughly one-third (34%) of September's delistings were homes owned by sellers who purchased their home two to five years ago (between 2020 and 2023). Another 13% of the delistings were from sellers who bought the home zero to two years ago (between 2023 and 2025). Put together, nearly half (47%) of delistings were from sellers who purchased their home within the last five years.

For context, a smaller share—37%—of total listings were homes owned by someone who had purchased it within the last five years, making that group disproportionately likely to pull their listings off the market.

There are a few reasons why sellers who have only owned the home for a short period are disproportionately likely to delist.

"Many homeowners who bought during the pandemic demand frenzy still expect sky-high prices. They remember a seller's market, so they're hesitant to yield to buyers who want to negotiate the price down and/or ask for concessions," Khan said. "Recent buyers are also more likely to be testing the market; maybe they would sell and move up to a bigger home in a more desirable neighborhood if they get the price they want, but otherwise they'd stay put. Longtime owners, though, are more motivated to sell—they're often downsizing or relocating for retirement."

Additionally, many of the people who bought their home between 2020 and 2022 have an ultra-low mortgage rate. Some of those people are only willing to give up that low rate if they can get the price they want for their home; otherwise, the math of selling and moving may not work out.

Metro-Level Highlights: Delistings of Homes for Sale

Among the 50 most populous U.S. metros, September 2025

• Delistings jumped most in Virginia Beach, VA, where they rose 74.5% year over year. Next were Washington, D.C. (53.9%), San Jose, CA (53.3%), Dallas (52.1%) and Houston (49.6%).
• Delistings declined in just three metros: St. Louis, MO (-12.4%), Nassau County, NY (-7.2%) and Chicago (-1%).
• Delistings made up the biggest share of all listings in Miami, where 7.8% of all listings were pulled off the market. Next: Fort Lauderdale, FL (7.7%), Dallas (7.5%), Philadelphia (7.5%) and West Palm Beach, FL (7.5%).
• Delistings made up the smallest share of all listings in Pittsburgh (3.4%), Milwaukee (3.5%), Columbus, OH (3.6%), Cincinnati (3.7%) and Chicago (4.1%).
• Stale listings (on the market 60+ days without going under contract) were most common in Florida and Texas: Miami (84.6%), Fort Lauderdale (84.6%), Austin (82.8%), West Palm Beach (82%) and San Antonio (81.2%). They were least common in San Jose, CA (44.2%), San Francisco (45.9%), Boston (48.9%), Providence, RI (49.1%) and Milwaukee (49.2%).

This is according to a Redfin analysis of delistings nationwide back through 2016. For this analysis, a home is considered "delisted" if it went off the market for more than 31 days without selling or going under contract as "pending" or "contingent." A listing is considered "stale" if at least 60 days have elapsed from the home's original listing date. For this analysis, a home is considered at risk of selling at a loss if it was originally listed for no more than 10% above the seller's original purchase price. September is the most recent month for which data is available.

To view the full report, including charts and additional metro-level data, please visit: https://www.redfin.com/news/delistings-jump-sellers-pull-homes-off-market/

About Redfin

Redfin is a technology-driven real estate company with the country's most-visited real estate brokerage website. As part of Rocket Companies (NYSE:RKT), Redfin is creating an integrated homeownership platform from search to close to make the dream of homeownership more affordable and accessible for everyone. Redfin's clients can see homes first with on-demand tours, easily apply for a home loan with Rocket Mortgage, and save thousands in fees while working with a top local agent.

You can find more information about Redfin and get the latest housing market data and research at Redfin.com/news. For more information about Rocket Companies, visit RocketCompanies.com.

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