Housing market competition cools off, opening up more inventory and slowing down prices

• Competition in the housing market is easing faster than normal this fall, a Zillow report said.
• The "rate lock" that kept potential sellers on the sidelines because of high mortgage rates is abating.
• As a result, housing supply ticked with total listings for sale up 0.2% in September from August.

Competition in the housing market is easing faster than normal, as home prices ticked lower last month and inventory loosened up, Zillow said Thursday.

Home values fell by 0.1% in September from August, with Zillow noting that even a small monthly decline is unusual for this time of year. And nearly a fourth of home listings in September saw a price cut, higher than previous years.