: Builders and brokers say the U.S. has entered a housing recession. But what does it mean if you're buying or selling a home?

Earlier this week, for example, homebuilders cited rising interest rates and construction costs (some of which are supply chain related) as “leading to a housing recession,” National Housing Association Chief Economist Robert Dietz Builders, said. DON’T MISS: A quarter of the U.S. will fall into the extreme heat zone. Below are the states in the red zone. On Thursday, the National Association of Realtors used the same term. “In terms of the economic impact, we’re definitely in a housing recession because builders aren’t building,” NAR’s Lawrence Yun said, with sales activity falling for six straight months, meaning economic activity has slowed. “So we’re in a housing recession,” he said.

Homes are still for sale

However, to be clear, this does not mean the wider housing market is in a meltdown. Homes are still selling, said Christine Cooper, chief U.S. economist and managing director at CoStar Group. Cooper told MarketWatch that the metrics could be “grim,” but “for the most part, the market slowdown is a return to a more balanced market.” Now is a time for slowing sales, she added. , especially if wages haven’t kept up. The price did not crash and burn. NAR’s Yun emphasized that homeowners “absolutely will not” fall into recession. SEE: WEEKEND READ: Is this a housing recession? What does this mean for people buying and selling homes right now? “For the average consumer, the word recession conjures up depressing times. It’s a tough market for those selling their homes and home builders,” Yun told MarketWatch in a follow-up email. “But homeowners continue to build housing wealth from rising house prices.” Buyers may be retreating, but that hasn’t sparked a flood of homes coming onto the market, or a scarcity of quality buyers. With a broader recession looming, buyers just feel more uncertainty. “People’s first reaction is to do nothing,” Jen Holland, a real estate agent with ERA Key Realty in Massachusetts, told MarketWatch. Part of the reason is herd mentality: “When everyone went out to see the houses, there were long queues outside the doors of open houses,” she said. “Everyone said, ‘I better go buy a house.'”

Now that the market has slowed, interest rates have risen, recession talk is everywhere, and open housing has slowed, she said. People became more worried. “There has definitely been a shift in buyer confidence,” Hall said. Some of her buyers have pulled out of sales because they feel uncertain, or they want to wait for prices to drop or interest rates to drop. People almost looked “frozen,” she said, “or they felt the most stable thing for me was doing nothing.” Hall said there were two big sales drops this week, She is also trying to get to the finish line with many buyers. “There’s a lot of behind-the-scenes work right now to stop people from switching jobs,” she said. But given the macroeconomic backdrop, “there may be a few more months of downside before inventory builds up,” Cooper said. “House price gains cool enough and sales recover.” NAR’s Yun said , he expects home sales to stabilize soon as interest rates become more stable, so “we may be out of a housing recession soon.” But all this talk of a recession and cooling demand has helped some buyers. Prospective buyers are taking this opportunity to take their time and ask for more sellers. “I got a house and they gave me 37 inspection requests,” she said. “I almost fell off my chair. This is a 40 year old house.” Have an idea for the real estate market? Write to MarketWatch reporter Aarthi Swaminathan at [email protected].