But after two years of double-digit price growth and wild bidding wars, the home sales are slowly starting to revert to a more normal pace thanks to rising mortgage rates, which make homes less affordable for buyers.

Looking ahead, Fratantoni said, "we expect the unemployment rate to go up a small to medium amount, which coupled with affordability challenges, will lower demand [for homes]."

That means home sellers will no longer be able to price their properties 15% higher than what their neighbor's house just sold for. They should prepare to accept buyer contingencies in home offers. And they should expect that their house will take longer to sell.

Oh, and appearances will matter again.

"Tidy up a bit to get it ready to list. ... We'll be back to a place where it matters if your home is in good shape," Fratantoni said.

For homebuyers, relative to the crushing frustrations of the past few years, "it will be a much better experience," he noted. While it will become increasingly expensive to take out a mortgage as rates rise, buyers will face less competition for each property. And when it comes to deciding whether to put in an offer, "they may have a couple of days to think about it instead of hours," Fratantoni said.

But after two years of double-digit price growth and wild bidding wars, the home sales are slowly starting to revert to a more normal pace thanks to rising mortgage rates, which make homes less affordable for buyers.

Looking ahead, Fratantoni said, "we expect the unemployment rate to go up a small to medium amount, which coupled with affordability challenges, will lower demand [for homes]."

That means home sellers will no longer be able to price their properties 15% higher than what their neighbor's house just sold for. They should prepare to accept buyer contingencies in home offers. And they should expect that their house will take longer to sell.

Oh, and appearances will matter again.

"Tidy up a bit to get it ready to list. ... We'll be back to a place where it matters if your home is in good shape," Fratantoni said.

For homebuyers, relative to the crushing frustrations of the past few years, "it will be a much better experience," he noted. While it will become increasingly expensive to take out a mortgage as rates rise, buyers will face less competition for each property. And when it comes to deciding whether to put in an offer, "they may have a couple of days to think about it instead of hours," Fratantoni said.