Mortgage Rates Top 7.4% as Forecasters Bet on a Stubborn New High
The 30-year mortgage rate hit 7.49%, existing-home sales fell below 4 million, and starts dropped as builders pull back — here's what forecasters expect next.
Home sales data is the steady pulse-check on one of the economy's most consequential markets. Every month, figures on closed sales, median prices, inventory levels, and new construction reveal whether housing is heating up, cooling down, or splitting into starkly different regional stories. This hub tracks that data as it's released and interpreted, offering a running record of how affordability, borrowing costs, and supply constraints are reshaping who can buy, sell, or build a home.
The topic matters now because the housing market is in an unusually uneven phase. National headlines about slowing sales or rising inventory often mask sharply divergent local realities—some metro areas are seeing prices climb to new records while others sit on years' worth of unsold homes. At the same time, structural shifts, like construction labor being pulled toward other industries or persistent underbuilding, are complicating the usual relationship between demand, supply, and price. Buyers, sellers, agents, and policymakers are all trying to read the same numbers and draw very different conclusions, which makes careful, ongoing coverage essential rather than a one-time story.
Readers here will find monthly and regional breakdowns of sales volume and pricing trends, analysis of inventory buildup or shortages, coverage of construction and permitting activity, and context on the buyer-versus-seller balance of power as it shifts. Expect a mix of national trend pieces and state- or metro-level snapshots, along with explanations of what the underlying data actually signals about affordability, market momentum, and the broader economic outlook. The goal is to help readers separate noise from meaningful shifts in a market that touches nearly every household's finances.
The 30-year mortgage rate hit 7.49%, existing-home sales fell below 4 million, and starts dropped as builders pull back — here's what forecasters expect next.
Refinance applications fell to half of last year's pace as the 30-year mortgage rate hit 7.49%, a near three-year high, dragging purchase demand down 15%
US housing starts fell 2.6% in August to 1.275 million as mortgage rates near 7.5% crushed buyer demand, with completions down 27% from a year ago.
Mortgage rates near 7% are squeezing US home buyers as prices keep rising and forecasters push relief further into 2027.
MBA data show mortgage applications fell 2.7% as 30-year rates hit 6.85%, refinancing dropped 6%, and existing-home sales slipped to 3.98 million.
US housing starts fell 12.4% in July to 1.239 million units as weak demand and affordability strain outweighed a rise in building permits.
Mortgage rates and sticky prices keep the U.S. housing market frozen, even as buyers slowly regain leverage and local sales trends diverge.
New home sales fell to 607K in July as prices hit a 5-year low, while regional data reveal a sharply divided housing market.
Zillow warns of a 2026 housing slowdown as data shows rising inventory and buyers regaining leverage nationwide.
New home sales dropped to 607K in July as prices fell nationally, though regional markets like Austin and the Northeast diverged sharply.
New U.S. single-family home sales fell 10.5% in July as high mortgage rates and prices sidelined buyers nationwide.
Cash buyers are losing share as more inventory and softer prices shift leverage toward mortgage-reliant home buyers nationwide.
Data center construction boom is pulling skilled labor from homebuilding, worsening a housing slowdown marked by falling sales and high prices.
R.I. home prices hit $525,000 in July as national data shows falling listings, soaring luxury prices, and construction labor shortages.
July housing data show a split market: Northeast sales rose, the South fell, prices diverged, and luxury homes kept surging despite high rates.
NJ home sales fall for an eighth straight month as national housing data shows the weakest year since 2011 amid affordability strain.
US housing starts plunged 12.4% in July, hitting a three-year low for single-family builds even as permits ticked higher.
Minnesota housing inventory hit a 7-year high in July as sales and listings rose, amid mixed national trends and rate uncertainty.
2026 is on track to be the weakest year for U.S. home sales since 2011. Mortgage rates are above 7.4% and prices are still edging up. Here's what comes next.