In this weeks COVID-19 housing market update, from the REALTOR.com YouTube channel, Chief Economist Danielle Hale discusses gas shortages and eye-popping inflation data, particularly for used cars.

She gives highlights from the latest job openings and labor turnover report, celebrates another drop in jobless claims data, and notes that small business optimism and challenges are consistent with these other data reports.

In housing, we saw a drop in mortgage rates despite inflation and Danielle discusses the implications for home buyers.

This week’s housing trend updates show that homes are still selling fast, but also show a tiny buyer-friendly step in the form of steady or slowing price gains and inventory declines as new listings grew. This is consistent with data from Fannie Mae’s National Housing Survey on buyer and seller confidence.

Finally, a recent Realtor.com® survey of new homeowners sheds light on how they’ll adjust to a return to work. A key takeaway: remote work is a strong preference.