Pending Home Sales Drop 16.4% To Record Low Of 275,484

The median monthly mortgage payment for a U.S. homebuyer fell to $2,777 in the four weeks ended November 1, marking a five-week low down from a peak of $2,811 in early October as mortgage rates and sale prices eased, Redfin reported.

Mortgage Rates and Sale Prices Retreat From October Peaks

The recent dip in borrowing costs brought some relief to prospective buyers, even as payments remained 11.1% higher than the same period a year ago. Freddie Mac put its average 30-year fixed mortgage rate at 7.18% for the week, down from the 7.24% rate used to calculate the prior month’s peak payments. Concurrently, the median home sale price dropped 0.4% from a year earlier to $388,604. Lesprom Network reported that this marks the third straight weekly price decline following three years of continuous increases.

Supply dynamics shifted as housing inventory expanded. Active listings climbed 2.1% from a year earlier to 1.5 million homes, pushing overall market supply to 4.6 months compared to four months previously. However, would-be sellers pulled back amid soft demand, sending new listings down 1.5% from the previous week and 4.6% from a year earlier to 346,795—the lowest volume recorded since January.

Pending Sales Hit Record Lows Across Major Metro Areas

Buyer demand contracted sharply despite the slight relief in financing costs. Pending sales dropped 0.6% from the prior week and fell 16.4% from a year earlier to 275,484, marking the lowest level in Redfin records dating back to 2021. Declines hit all 50 of the most populous U.S. metropolitan areas for the fourth week, led by steep pullbacks in Seattle down 30.5%, San Diego down 26.9%, and Atlanta down 26.3%.

Sellers responded to the stagnant activity by adjusting expectations. The share of active listings featuring a price cut rose to 21.2%, up from 20.6% a year earlier. Homes spent a median of 50 days on the market, one day longer than the previous year, while the share of homes going off the market within two weeks slipped to 26.9% from 28%. Meanwhile, the median asking price rose 2% to $401,860.

Divergence persisted across regional markets. Among the 50 largest metros, sale prices rose most sharply in San Francisco at 17.3%, New Brunswick, New Jersey at 7.6%, and Pittsburgh at 7%. Conversely, prices fell the furthest in Fort Lauderdale, Florida down 5.9%, Austin, Texas down 5.8%, and Seattle down 5.1%. Broader monthly price gauges continued to show positive annual growth, with the S&P Cotality Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index posting a 2.1% increase from a year earlier in August.