U.S. pending home sales fall as mortgage rates pressure housing market
Higher borrowing costs are further cooling the U.S. housing market as affordability worsens and buyers gain more leverage over sellers. In September, pending home sales drop 4% from a month earlier while listings rise to their highest level since March 2020.
Highlights
- Seasonally adjusted pending home sales fell 4% in September, the steepest monthly drop in over three years per Redfin Corp.
- Contract activity dipped to its lowest since 2014, excluding early 2020, while home supply climbed to its highest since March 2020.
- Mortgage rates at 7% are reducing buyer demand, leading sellers to cut prices and giving buyers more negotiating power in the U.S. housing market.
September slowdown deepens housing strain
As reported by Bloomberg, citing Redfin Corp., seasonally adjusted pending home sales plunge 4% in September from a month earlier, marking the biggest monthly decline in more than three years.The drop leaves contract activity at its lowest level since 2014, excluding the early months of the 2020 Covid pandemic. At the same time, the supply of homes for sale climbs to its highest level since March 2020.
Buyers gain leverage as sellers cut prices
The return of 7% mortgage rates is quieting demand across the U.S. housing sector, limiting the pool of active buyers and weighing on transaction activity.With fewer purchasers competing for homes, sellers are cutting prices and the remaining buyers are increasingly able to dictate terms. The shift points to a softer market balance for residential real estate as elevated financing costs continue to restrain demand.
The surge in U.S. Treasury yields and the move to a higher-rate environment have pushed 30-year mortgage rates up to around 7.4%, keeping many homeowners locked into existing loans. Our earlier article also explained how rising rates can trigger mortgage-hedging flows in Treasuries and interest-rate swaps, adding pressure to broader bond-market selling even if the overall impact is seen as smaller than in past stress periods.
Latest Mortgage News
-
Afghanistan
-
Albania
-
Algeria
-
Angola
-
Argentina
-
Armenia
-
Australia
-
Austria
-
Azerbaijan
-
Bahamas
-
Bahrain
-
Bangladesh
-
Belarus
-
Belgium
-
Bolivia
-
Botswana
-
Brazil
-
Brunei
-
Bulgaria
-
Cambodia
-
Cameroon
-
Canada
-
Chile
-
China
-
Colombia
-
Congo
-
Costa Rica
-
Cote d'Ivoire
-
Croatia
-
Cuba
-
Cyprus
-
Czechia
-
DR Congo
-
Denmark
-
Dominican Republic
-
Ecuador
-
Egypt
-
El Salvador
-
Estonia
-
Eswatini
-
Ethiopia
-
Finland
-
France
-
Georgia
-
Germany
-
Ghana
-
Greece
-
Haiti
-
Hong Kong
-
Hungary
-
India
-
Indonesia
-
Iran, Islamic republic
-
Iraq
-
Ireland
-
Israel
-
Italy
-
Jamaica
-
Japan
-
Jordan
-
Kazakhstan
-
Kenya
-
Korea
-
Kuwait
-
Kyrgyzstan
-
Laos
-
Latvia
-
Lebanon
-
Lesotho
-
Libya
-
Lithuania
-
Luxembourg
-
Madagascar
-
Malaysia
-
Malta
-
Mauritius
-
Mexico
-
Moldova
-
Mongolia
-
Montenegro
-
Morocco
-
Mozambique
-
Myanmar
-
Namibia
-
Nepal
-
Netherlands
-
New Zealand
-
Nigeria
-
North Macedonia
-
Norway
-
Oman
-
Pakistan
-
Palestine
-
Panama
-
Papua New Guinea
-
Paraguay
-
Peru
-
Philippines
-
Poland
-
Portugal
-
Puerto Rico
-
Qatar
-
Reunion
-
Romania
-
Rwanda
-
Saudi Arabia
-
Serbia
-
Singapore
-
Slovakia
-
Slovenia
-
Somalia
-
South Africa
-
Spain
-
Sri Lanka
-
Sweden
-
Switzerland
-
Syria
-
Taiwan
-
Tajikistan
-
Tanzania
-
Thailand
-
Trinidad and Tobago
-
Tunisia
-
Turkey
-
UAE
-
Uganda
-
Ukraine
-
United Kingdom
-
United States
-
Uruguay
-
Uzbekistan
-
Venezuela
-
Vietnam
-
Yemen
-
Zambia
-
Zimbabwe
- Forex
- Crypto
