Buyers retreat as home prices post first annual drop in years
New listings fell 0.6% to 352,421, their lowest count since January, as homeowners react to slow homebuying demand.
Even so, active inventory edged up 0.3% to 1,510,619 homes, with months of supply rising to 4.5 — a level considered balanced — giving buyers more negotiating power than they have had in over a decade. Sellers are pulling back, but buyers are pulling back faster.
New data from the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller and Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) showed continued home price growth in August, though affordability pressures remain as inflation and mortgage rates continue to weigh on buyers. https://t.co/tawpgNZrLV
— Mortgage Professional America Magazine (@MPAMagazineUS) October 27, 2026
What it means for brokers
Melissa Cohn, regional vice president at William Raveis Mortgage in New York, told MPA in February that the pace of market recovery would hinge almost entirely on where borrowing costs landed.
“I think if rates remain stable, then hopefully we’ll see some improvement because a lot of people put off making a move last year,” Cohn said.
“But hopefully inflation will stabilize and head back down towards the 2% level, the Fed will enact two additional rate cuts this year, we’ll see lower rates and we’ll have a better year.”
