US Existing-Home Sales Fall to 3.75 Million as 30-Year Mortgage Rates Stay Above 7%
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Nov 12
US Existing-Home Sales Fall to 3.75 Million as 30-Year Mortgage Rates Stay Above 7%
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Nov 12
Summary
3.75 million existing-home sales at a seasonally adjusted annual rate marked the slowest pace since August 2010 after October sales fell 8.8% from a year earlier and 5.5% from September.
7.11% average 30-year mortgage rates, down from 7.18% a week earlier but up from 6.24% a year ago, have kept affordability strained and buyers sidelined.
Rising prices, faster inflation and weaker real wage growth are squeezing would-be buyers, while owners locked into sub-3% loans remain reluctant to sell, prolonging market gridlock.
October consumer prices rose 0.4% after 0.6% in September, lifting expectations of a December Fed rate increase as the 10-year Treasury yield moved above 5% and threatened further pressure on mortgages.
Economists say sales are likely to stay weak for the next few months, with 2026 shaping up as one of the weakest years for home sales in more than a decade.