The housing market is hot, but some homeowners may overestimate just how hot it is when they go to sell. Real estate professionals shared with realtor.com® a few unrealistic expectationss that some of their sellers have had, such as that their home has doubled in value since they bought it or that they shouldn’t have to make any repairs before closing.

“One of the biggest mistakes sellers can make is going with aspirational pricing just because it is a seller’s market,” Jeremy Bolger, a real estate salesperson with Brown Harris Stevens in New York City, told realtor.com®. “We have seen many deals get multiple offers and go at or over ask, but they almost always stem from buyers sensing some form of value. And if there is no perceived value, buyers will often stay on the sidelines, even with limited inventory.”

Not everything will sell for a price far above list price or as quickly as in a few days—or mere hours—even in this hot housing market. Real estate pros told realtor.com® that some of their sellers believe their home will sell in a few days and then become disappointed when it doesn’t. Homes that need some repairs, are in a higher price range, or have quirky features may still linger on the market, realtor.com® notes.

Also, even in a seller’s market, homeowners will still need to make repairs. Investors may be willing to overlook some repairs, but many buyers are in search of move-in ready, agents say.

“If the seller has a place that needs a touch-up or decorative work, it’s usually a good idea to do it ahead of listing,” Bolger told realtor.com®. “Construction and renovation costs are up sharply with all the supply chain issues. Buyers can be wary of purchasing a place that they will have to do work on, especially since the money spent there needs to be fully out of pocket versus buying a move-in-ready product and having everything rolled into the mortgage.”

Rising home prices and shrinking inventories are pressing on affordability, the National Association of REALTORS® reports. Home buyers are struggling to find a home to buy—and one they can afford.

The share of homes available and affordable for a household earning $100,000 has fallen considerably over the past two years, NAR reports. In October, home prices climbed 13% while housing inventories fell 12% compared to a year ago, NAR reports.

View Affordability in Your Area: NAR’s Housing Affordability Index

“Due to weaker affordability and lower inventory, there are 503,000 fewer homes available for sale that this household can currently afford to buy compared to two years ago,” Nadia Evangelou, NAR’s senior economist and director of forecasting, writes on the association’s Economists’ Outlook blog.

Rising inflation is pressing on Americans across the economic spectrum with costs for groceries to gasoline increasing. In November, consumer prices increased by 6.8% compared to a year ago, the largest annual gain in the past 40 years.

Some of the highest increases occurred for energy, shelter, cars, and food, which comprise about 61% of consumer purchases and account for 81% of inflation over the past 12 months, MarketWatch reports.

Renters may be feeling the impact. Rents are up 3% and accelerating at about 5% annually, says Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the National Association of REALTORS®.

Also, heating bills are increasing; natural gas prices have jumped by 25%.

Yun also warns that the increase in inflation is a primary reason that mortgage rates will likely rise in 2022. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is predicted to reach 3.7% by the end of 2022. Rates averaged 3.10% last week, according to Freddie Mac.

“One aspect of inflation is that real estate has proven to be a good hedge,” Yun says.

As he explains in a recent statement:

“In the 1970s, a high inflationary period when [the Consumer Price Index] averaged 7.1% per year, home price gains outpaced inflation with a 9.9% gain. Even when interest rates soared in the 1980s and thereby crushed home sales, home prices still held up to consumer price inflation: 5.5% versus 5.6%. That’s because rents are soaring. Other decades also show similar patterns. Therefore, for those concerned about the loss in purchasing power of money and savings, be assured that real estate has proven to be a good hedge against inflation.”

Women are second only to married couples as a homebuying presence in the real estate market, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Currently, 19% of the homebuying market are single women, while 9% are single men and 60% are married couples, according to NAR.

Single women and single men show a high desire to own a home of their own, but single women outnumber men by about a 2-1 ratio. While a roughly equivalent percentage of men and women purchase because of the desire to own a home, the number of women who purchase a home to be near their friends and family is double that of men, NAR says.

Single women buyers also are more likely to purchase a home if they have a child under the age of 18, and they’re more likely to purchase a multigenerational home to accommodate adult siblings, adult children, and grandparents.

“These family obligations may make purchasing a home more attractive to a single woman buyer as she has the need for stable housing on a continual basis,” Jessica Lautz, NAR’s vice president of demographics and behavioral insights, writes at the association’s blog.

Seventeen percent of single women buyers say they have kids under the age of 18 who live with them, and 13% say they live in a multigenerational home, according to NAR’s Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers.

As the number of single women buyers rises, the share of married couples in the real estate market has been dropping. Lautz cites data that shows in 1990, 59% of Americans were married; that percentage has dropped to 52% more recently.

For the last four consecutive weeks, mortgage rates have generally held stable. But that could soon change, with inflation, action from the Federal Reserve possibly quickening its pace to taper its bond purchases, and other financial activity triggered by the ongoing pandemic all playing a role, economists say.

“Mortgage rates have moved sideways over the last several weeks, fluctuating within a narrow range,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “Going forward, the path that rates take will be directly impacted by more information about the omicron variant as it is revealed and the trajectory of the pandemic. In the meantime, rates remain low and stable, even as the nation faces declining housing affordability and low inventory.”

Freddie Mac reports the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending Dec. 9:

• 30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 3.10%, with an average 0.7 point, dropping from last week’s 3.11% average. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 2.71%.
• 15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 2.38%, with an average 0.7 point, falling from last week’s 2.39% average. A year ago, 15-year rates averaged 2.26%.
• 5-year hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages: averaged 2.45%, with an average 0.3 point, falling from last week’s 2.49% average. A year ago, 5-year ARMs averaged 2.79%.

Freddie Mac reports average commitment rates along with points to better reflect the total upfront cost of obtaining the mortgage.

Homeowners continue to build wealth. Home price growth is reaching the highest level in more than four decades, pushing equity gains to a record high.

The average home equity gained between the third quarter of 2020 and the third quarter of 2021 is about $57,000, CoreLogic reports.

“Not only have equity gains helped homeowners more seamlessly transition out of forbearance and avoid a distressed sale, but they’ve also enabled many to continue building their wealth,” says Frank Martell, president and CEO of CoreLogic.

Overall, homeowners with mortgages have seen their equity increase by a total of $3.2 trillion since the third quarter of 2020—a jump of 31.1% year over year, CoreLogic reports.

California, Hawaii, and Washington posted the largest equity gains in the third quarter year over year, up $118,700, $112,700, and $96,000, respectively, CoreLogic reports. On the other hand, North Dakota posted the lowest average equity increases at $15,400.

Meanwhile, the number of homeowners with negative equity—where the mortgage on the property is higher than what the property is currently worth—continues to fall. Negative equity decreased by 5.7% when comparing the second quarter to the third quarter. About 1.2 million homes—or 2.1% of all properties with a mortgage—are in a negative equity position, CoreLogic reports.