Weekly Housing Headlines

Homebuyers are scoring the biggest discounts in 13 years; mortgage applications decreased 8.9% from one week earlier; home prices in the United States climbed to new records in 2025; mortgages that are more than 90 days past due rose in December to about 0.20% from just under 0.17% a year earlier; foreclosure filings rose 14% nationwide in 2025; and the latest homeownership rate rose to 65.7% in Q4 2025.

Redfin Reports Homebuyers Are Scoring the Biggest Discounts in 13 Years
Redfin - 2/2/2026
The typical homebuyer who purchased a home for below the list price in 2025 got a 7.9% discount – the largest since 2012, according to a new report from Redfin.

Mortgage Applications Decrease in Latest MBA Weekly Survey
Mortgage Bankers Association - 2/4/2026
Mortgage applications decreased 8.9 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending January 30, 2026.

Record home prices squeeze borrowers as investors, cash buyers hold edge
Mortgage Professional America - 1/30/2026
Home prices in the United States climbed to new records in 2025, even as profit margins compressed and access to homeownership grew more uneven between cash-rich buyers and households dependent on financing.

Housing affordability isn’t just hurting buyers: More homeowners are falling behind on their mortgages
CNBC - 2/2/2026
Mortgages that are more than 90 days past due rose in December to about 0.20% from just under 0.17% a year earlier, according to credit scoring company VantageScore.

Foreclosure Shock: Five States Emerge As Epicenter Of Growing U.S. Housing Plight
Financial Advisor - 2/2/2026
Foreclosure filings rose 14% nationwide in 2025, marking a sharp increase from the year before, according to data from real estate analytics firm ATTOM.

Homeownership Rate Inches Up to 65.7%
Eye On Housing - 2/3/2026
The latest homeownership rate rose to 65.7% in Q4 2025, according to the Census’s Housing Vacancy Survey. While this was a modest quarterly increase, the broader picture continues to reflect significant affordability challenges.

Young Black buyers fall further behind in homeownership race
Mortgage Professional America - 2/3/2026
Redfin found that 14.2% of Black Gen Zers owned their home, compared with 31.6% of white Gen Zers. Among millennials, 32% of Black households owned, versus 66.6% of white millennials – roughly twice the rate.

Affordability edges back as weary buyers gain rare opening
Mortgage Professional America - 2/4/2026
After three bruising years for borrowers, Zillow’s January Market Report suggests that affordability finally edged in buyers’ favor, even as overall activity stayed muted.

Mortgage Rates Declined Despite Higher Treasury Yields
Eye On Housing - 2/4/2026
Long-term mortgage rates continued to decline in January. According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.10% last month, 9 basis points lower than December.

A surprising share of homeowners have high mortgage rates. Here’s the breakdown
CNBC - 2/4/2026
The share of U.S. homeowners with high rates on their mortgages has jumped sharply in just the last few years. That’s having a marked impact on the refinance market and a somewhat more muted impact on home sales.