Weekly Housing Headlines

Existing home sales fell 2.4% last month from May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.09 million units; the average for a 30-year, fixed loan rose from 6.43% a week earlier; pending home sales rose 1.3% from a week earlier during the four weeks ending July 5; May prices increased 0.8% year over year; Gen Z accounted for a record 20% of purchase rate locks in the second quarter; and roughly one in five (19.1%) U.S. house hunters looked to move from one part of the country to another in the first quarter.

U.S. home prices hit an all-time high as sales slow and mortgage rates rise
AP News - 7/9/2026
Existing home sales fell 2.4% last month from May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.09 million units, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday. Sales rose 2.8% compared with June last year.

U.S. Mortgage Rates Rise To 6.49%, Reversing Last Week's Drop
Financial Advisor - 7/9/2026
The average for a 30-year, fixed loan rose from 6.43% a week earlier, Freddie Mac said in a statement Thursday. The rate was 6.72% a year ago.

U.S. Pending Home Sales Rise to Highest Level in 6 Weeks
Redfin - 7/9/2026
U.S. pending home sales rose 1.3% from a week earlier to their highest level since the first half of May during the four weeks ending July 5.

Weekly Housing Trends: U.S. Market Update (Week Ending July 4th, 2026)
Realtor.com - 7/9/2026
Homes sold faster than they did a year ago at this time for the first time since April 2024, a notable milestone after five consecutive weeks of parity and a long stretch of softness before that.

Wealth Gap Creates Two-Speed Housing Market As Home Prices Edge Higher: Cotality
National Mortgage Professional - 7/9/2026
May prices increased 0.8% year over year, with equity-rich buyers fueling gains in markets like San Francisco while affordability continues to sideline many traditional borrowers.

Here’s the state of play for the mortgage market after the long weekend
Mortgage Professional America - 7/6/2026
Mortgage rates tumbled to their lowest level for seven weeks last Thursday – and there were further positive signs for the market at the beginning of this week as Treasury yields edged lower again.

Non-QM gaps widen between full-doc and alt-doc loans
Scotsman Guide - 7/6/2026
Deteriorating non-qualified mortgage performance that first emerged in 2024 and accelerated through 2025 is likely to worsen further in 2026, a sector report published last week warns, linking concentrated weakness to specific non-QM products.

Gen Z Hits Record Share Of Purchase Lending
National Mortgage Professional - 7/6/2026
New Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) data shows Gen Z accounted for a record 20% of purchase rate locks in the second quarter, while Millennials and Gen Z now make up two-thirds of purchase mortgage lending.

19% of House Hunters Are Looking to Relocate – And They’re Headed to the Sun Belt
Redfin - 6/29/2026
Roughly one in five (19.1%) U.S. house hunters looked to move from one part of the country to another in the first quarter. That’s up slightly from 18.9% a year earlier and the highest share in records dating back to 2021.

FHA foreclosure pressure builds as May delinquency rate ticks up
Mortgage Professional America - 6/29/2026
U.S. mortgage delinquencies edged higher in May 2026, but Intercontinental Exchange says the bump reflects a calendar quirk rather than a genuine shift in borrower health, even as serious delinquencies and active foreclosure inventory continue their slow climb.