Buyers and sellers are both afraid to enter the real estate market right now and that’s causing some instability, said real estate broker Richard Strahm.

Rising mortgage rates and economic uncertainty from inflation and recession fears are slowing the housing market down in the Philadelphia region, writes Michaelle Bond for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Sales are slower but prices remain high because housing supplies are still tight.

“People are looking for stability,” said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at the multiple listing service Bright MLS.. “We just haven’t had that in the last few months.”

Home prices aren’t offering buyer relief, even though sellers are adjusting price expectations, discovering they were too optimistic, Sturtevant said.

Prices are still rising faster in the Philadelphia region than in other major Mid-Atlantic markets, despite less demand and higher mortgage rates because the historically low supply of homes for sale in the Philadelphia area is keeping prices high.

Home sales in the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area were down 27 percent in September compared to the same time last year.

The number of sales that closed was the lowest for September since 2015.

Read more about the current situation with buyers and sellers in the housing market at The Philadelphia Inquirer.