Weekly Housing Headlines

This week, data reveals that September new home mortgage applications increased 10.8% from last year; home sales rose 3.2% year over year during the four weeks ending October 13 – the biggest increase in three years; mortgage applications decreased 17% from one week earlier; rates climbed higher to 6.52%; and the median listing price has stabilized at year-ago levels as the housing market has continued on without any major shifts in recent months.

September New Home Purchase Mortgage Applications Increased 10.8 Percent
Mortgage Bankers Association - 10/17/2024
Applications for new home purchases declined in September, down 6% compared to August 2024, consistent with seasonal patterns, and continued to run ahead of last year's pace by 10.8%.

Weekly Housing Trends View — Data for Week Ending Oct. 12, 2024
Realtor.com - 10/17/2024
The median listing price stabilized at year-ago levels after falling annually for the last 16 weeks. In general, the housing market has carried on without any major shifts in recent months, despite falling mortgage rates.

Redfin Reports Rising Mortgage Rates Haven’t Yet Slowed Pending Sales
Redfin - 10/17/2024
Pending U.S. home sales rose 3.2% year over year during the four weeks ending October 13, the biggest increase in three years, according to a new report from Redfin.

Mortgage Applications Decrease in Latest MBA Weekly Survey
Mortgage Bankers Association - 10/16/2024
Mortgage applications decreased 17.0 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Applications Survey for the week ending October 11, 2024.

Mortgage Rates Climb To 6.52%, Highest Since Early August
Financial Advisor - 10/16/2024
U.S. mortgage rates rose sharply for a second straight week, reaching the highest level since early August while prompting steep declines in both home-purchase and refinance activity.

Mortgage Credit Availability Decreased in September
Mortgage Bankers Association - 10/15/2024
Mortgage credit availability tightened slightly in September as lenders remained cautious in this uncertain economic environment. There was a decline in loan programs for cash-out refinances, jumbo and non-QM loans.

Home price growth slows, but buyers are still stuck
Mortgage Professional America - 10/16/2024
Single-family home prices increased by 5.9% from Q3 2023 to Q3 2024, a slight deceleration from the previous quarter’s 6.4% annual growth rate, according to the Fannie Mae Home Price Index.

Single-Family Permits Higher in August 2024
Eye On Housing - 10/16/2024
Over the first eight months of 2024, the total number of single-family permits issued year-to-date nationwide reached 685,923. On a year-over-year basis, this is an increase of 11.5% over the August 2023 level of 615,453.

Mortgage Lenders Have Work To Do When It Comes To Customer Service, Survey Says
National Mortgage Professional - 10/15/2024
In the inaugural American Customer Satisfaction Index results, released today, mortgage lenders come up short-handed for customer satisfaction with a debut score of 75, placing the industry on the lower end of the Index overall.

Why America's Housing Shortage Is So Hard To Fix
Financial Advisor - 10/14/2024
Fixing a problem more than a decade in the making won’t be easy, says Ali Wolf, chief economist for Zonda, which collects data on homebuilding.