Housing markets

Mortgage defaults ease to start second half of 2025

Mortgage performance improved in July, signaling overall strength for the typical U.S. homeowner, but pockets of troubled borrowers are evident in the latest data, according to an Intercontinental Exchange report. The national delinquency rate came in at 3.27% in July, equivalent to 1.79 million loans, and fell 8 basis points from the previous month, ICE […]

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Maryland community bank bucks trend, pins hopes on mortgages

Glen Burnie Bancorp When Mark Hanna told his banker friends that the Maryland-based community bank he leads was planning to buy a mortgage lender, they “looked at me as if I had five eyes,” he recalled this week. The underwhelming reaction came as little surprise, said Hanna, who is the president and CEO of Glen

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Homebuyers in the US canceled contracts at record rate for July

Home-purchase contracts in the US were canceled at a record rate for July as jittery buyers got cold feet.  About 58,000 agreements fell through last month, equivalent to 15.3% of homes that went under contract, according to Redfin. It was the highest cancellation rate for a July in data going back to 2017, the brokerage

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30-year mortgage rate declines by most since February

US mortgage rates dropped last week by the most since February, enticing homeowners to step up refinancing. The contract rate on a 30-year mortgage declined 10 basis points to 6.67% in the week ended Aug. 8, according to Mortgage Bankers Association data released Wednesday. The rate on a 15-year mortgage retreated below 6% for the

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Housing starts rise to five-month high, led by multifamily

Housing starts in the US climbed in July to five-month high, led by the strongest pace of multifamily construction in more than two years. New residential construction increased 5.2% last month to an annualized rate of 1.43 million homes, according to government figures released Tuesday. That was above all forecasts in a Bloomberg survey of

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How big is the wildfire risk in the Western housing market?

Lenders, homeowners and servicers are facing a massive wildfire risk in the Western U.S. that extends beyond the initial burn. Insurance woes, inflationary pressures and contractor shortages are weighing on affected mortgage holders, according to Cotality’s 2025 Wildfire Risk Report. The assessment found nearly 2.6 million homes at moderate or greater risk of wildfire damage

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Half of largest housing markets record home price downturns

Among the nation’s 50 largest metro areas, half, primarily in the north and east, had annual home price increases in July, while the others are reporting downturns, Zillow found. Nationwide, year-over-year home price appreciation was a meager 0.2%. While this helped to marginally improve affordability, with average monthly mortgage costs down $19 over the past

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Homebuilders encounter credit, supply cost headwinds

Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg The ongoing tariff-impacted rise of material and service prices, alongside challenging credit conditions, are a double whammy hitting residential construction, according to analysis from the National Association of Home Builders. Prices for goods and services used in residential construction came in 2.8% higher in July on an annual basis, marking the largest increase

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Opendoor CEO Carrie Wheeler exits the meme stock darling

News that Opendoor CEO Carrie Wheeler is leaving the company boosted the company’s stock price to its third-highest level since the run-up began at the start of July. The announcement was made before trading started on Friday morning. When the markets did open, Opendoor began the day at $3.415 per share and in early trading

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Real estate investor sentiment up despite economic worries

The real estate market is looking up, at least according to property investors. But even amidst the sunny outlook, many of them still worry about tariffs, high insurance and a possible recession. Optimism among real estate investors improved, according to the most recent Investor Sentiment Index. The index rose to 102, up from 88 in

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