High Mortgage Rates Keep US Homes Unaffordable Despite Buyer Leverage, Blend Financial Says

• High mortgage rates are constraining US home purchases, weakening seller demand and making residential construction increasingly uneconomical.
• Sellers outnumbered buyers by 63% in September, a record gap; nearly three in five homes sold below their original asking prices.
• Average 30-year mortgage rates remain above 7%, keeping financing costly despite increased buyer negotiating power.
• Housing starts fell 5.2% in September to an annualized 1,220,000 units, down 7.4% from a year earlier.
• Pending home sales dropped 7.3% to their lowest level since tracking began in 2001, signaling further pressure on housing activity.

Disclaimer: This news brief was created by Public Technologies (PUBT) using generative artificial intelligence. While PUBT strives to provide accurate and timely information, this AI-generated content is for informational purposes only and should not be interpreted as financial, investment, or legal advice. Blend Financial Inc. published the original content used to generate this news brief on November 12, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained therein.