Home prices this December are expected to be impacted by the cooling mortgage interest rate climate. FRANCESCO CARTA/Francesco Carta fotografo/Getty Images

As the job market softens and no guarantee that the Federal Reserve will continue interest rate cuts , average home prices still remain above $500,000. This can be discouraging, especially for first-time homebuyers who were hoping for more affordability factors to show up in their favor. High mortgage interest rates in recent years and elevated prices have made for an expensive combination so any relief with the latter, in particular, would be helpful for buyers now.

So where are home prices headed this December, specifically? We spoke with housing market and lending experts to get a better idea on how prices could change

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