Home sales stay under 4 million as mortgage rates climb past 7%
The U.S. housing market ended the summer on its slowest stretch of the year. Existing-home sales rose 1.5% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 3.99 million, according to the National Association of Realtors, but that was still 2.2% lower than a year earlier and the second straight month below 4 million.
Prices are still rising, slowly
The median existing-home price was $417,500 in September, up 1.3% from a year ago. NAR says that was the 39th month in a row of year-over-year price gains and the highest median on record for a September. Price growth has cooled a lot, though: gains of around 1% a year are well below the pace of the past few years.
More homes for buyers to choose from
Inventory rose to 1.60 million homes, up 4.6% from a year earlier and the highest level since November 2019. That works out to a 4.8-month supply. NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said higher inventory and longer days on the market give buyers more negotiating power, and that sellers may need to offer price cuts or other incentives.
Rates are the big headwind
Mortgage rates have moved back above 7%. Freddie Mac’s weekly survey put the average 30-year fixed rate at 7.24% on October 29. Higher rates mean fewer buyers qualify, and the next readings point the same way: NAR’s pending home sales index, which tracks contracts signed, fell 7.3% in September.
What it means
- Buyers: more listings and more room to negotiate on price, repairs and closing costs, but higher monthly payments.
- Sellers: pricing realistically from the start matters more than it did a year ago.
- Investors: slower markets can open opportunities for long-term buyers with patient capital.
Sources: National Association of Realtors, Inman, The Industry Spread (Freddie Mac rate).
