Weekly Housing Headlines

U.S. mortgage rates fell to their lowest level in more than three years; mortgage applications increased 2.8% from one week earlier; January new home purchase mortgage applications increased 2%; pending home sales in January decreased by 0.8% from the prior month; refinancing borrowers, not homebuyers, drove U.S. mortgage activity in the final months of 2025; and new-home construction permits ticked up in December 2025.

U.S. Mortgage Rates Fall To Lowest Level In More Than Three Years
Financial Advisor - 2/19/2026
The average for 30-year, fixed loans was 6.01%, down from 6.09% last week, data from Freddie Mac showed Thursday. By comparison, the rate was 6.85% a year ago.

Mortgage Applications Increase in Latest MBA Weekly Survey
Mortgage Bankers Association - 2/18/2026
Mortgage applications increased 2.8 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending February 13, 2026.

January New Home Purchase Mortgage Applications Increased 2 Percent
Mortgage Bankers Association - 2/19/2026
New home purchase activity strengthened in January, as both mortgage applications and new home sales saw gains. Compared to December 2025, applications increased by 19 percent.

NAR Pending Home Sales Report Shows 0.8% Decrease in January
National Association of Realtors - 2/19/2026
Pending home sales in January decreased by 0.8% from the prior month, according to the National Association of Realtors Pending Home Sales Report. That's a 0.4% year over year.

Refi wave lifts Q4 originations
Mortgage Professional America - 2/13/2026
Refinancing borrowers, not homebuyers, drove U.S. mortgage activity in the final months of 2025, as falling rates nudged homeowners back to their lenders while purchase demand stayed soft.

Homebuilders Hope Lower Mortgage Rates Will Lure Buyers as New Construction Falls
Realtor.com - 2/18/2026
New-home construction permits ticked up in December 2025, after November numbers declined, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau Monthly New Residential Construction report.

Listings surge, sales slide in RE/MAX’s ‘early spring’ housing reset
Mortgage Professional America - 2/18/2026
January 2026 reset the United States housing market in familiar fashion, with sales cooling even as fresh inventory hit the market and price growth stayed subdued, according to the latest RE/MAX National Housing Report.

Buyers Are Ghosting the Market: The Metros Where They’re Backing Out of Deals
Realtor.com - 2/13/2026
The largest percentage of buyers backing out of homes under contract are in Atlanta (10.3%), Las Vegas (10.1%), San Antonio, TX (9.6%), Riverside, CA (9.3%) and Phoenix (9.2%), according to Realtor.com data.

Redfin Reports U.S. Home Prices Crept Up 0.3% in January
Redfin - 2/17/2026
Prices fell month over month in 14 major metros, with the biggest declines in Warren, MI, San Antonio and Minneapolis.

Singles Facing Significantly Greater Housing Cost Burden Than Married Couples
National Mortgage Professional - 2/13/2026
According to a Redfin-commissioned survey of 4,000 U.S. adults last November, 64% of single respondents report struggling to afford their regular rent or mortgage payments, compared with 39% of married respondents.