Sales of previously owned homes fell in October to their slowest pace in more than 16 years, as mortgage rates near their highest levels since 2000 kept buyers on the sidelines, according to a report released Thursday by the National Association of Realtors.
Existing-home sales dropped 5.5% from September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.75 million, the lowest level since August 2010, NAR said. Sales were down 8.8% from October 2025, according to the report. Realtor.com reported that September’s pace was revised down to 3.97 million.
US previously owned home sales fell last month to a 16-year low as a cascade of negative news on mortgage rates and inflation deterred would-be buyers https://t.co/5iGdNwfYRI
— Bloomberg (@business) November 12, 2026
“Home buying is difficult when mortgage rates have climbed to their highest levels since 2000, aside from a single month in 2023,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in the group’s release. “As a result, home sales fell to their lowest level since August 2010.”
Rates did the damage
The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate averaged 7.33% in October, up from 6.86% in September, Realtor.com reported, citing Freddie Mac. The rate hit a three-year high of 7.40% on Oct. 8 and has eased gradually over the past four weeks, according to the outlet.
“It was a punch in the gut,” Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com, told NPR. “We expected to see a soft month but not the softest month since 2010.”
Sales fell year over year in every price tier, including homes priced at $1 million and up, according to Realtor.com. Month over month, sales fell 9.7% in the West, 6.5% in the South and 3.2% in the Midwest, while holding steady in the Northeast, the outlet reported. Compared with a year earlier, sales declined in all four regions, NAR said.
Prices hold, inventory climbs
Despite the slowdown, the median existing-home price rose 0.4% from a year earlier to $416,700, according to NAR. Realtor.com said that was the highest median on record for the month of October.
Unsold inventory rose 1.3% to 1.59 million homes, equal to a 5.1-month supply, up from 4.7 months in September and 4.4 months a year earlier, NAR reported. Realtor.com described inventory as a seven-year high and the months of supply as the highest in 11 years.
Affordability also slipped. The national housing affordability index fell to 100.7 from 107.3 a year ago, according to Realtor.com, and the share of first-time buyers dropped to 29% in October from 31% in September. Cash purchases rose to 29% from 27%, the outlet reported.
What comes next
Yun said in NAR’s release that the nation’s 88 million homeowners are “largely in a comfortable financial position due to sizable housing wealth accumulation,” noting that distressed sales make up only 2% of transactions. “Based on the current underwhelming home sales pace at a time of consistent job growth, there could be sizable pent-up demand if mortgage rates decline,” he said.
Realtor.com Chief Economist Danielle Hale said sales will likely stay low for the rest of 2026 but do not represent a new normal, according to the outlet. She warned that a strong job market, persistent inflation and “an expected need for tighter monetary policy in the near term” are likely to limit how far mortgage rates can fall, Realtor.com reported.
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- Original post: Bloomberg (@business) on X, Nov 12, 2026
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