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CNN

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The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate dropped to 6.19% for the week ending October 23, down from 6.27% last week, according to Freddie Mac data.

CNBC

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Mortgage rates last week dropped to the lowest level in a month, pushing more borrowers to refinance. As a result, applications to refinance a home loan rose 4% for the week and were 81% higher than the same week one year ago.

Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors

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The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted to extend until Nov. 28 the price-gouging protections for rental housing that had been triggered by the January wildfires.

CNBC

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Homeowners and real estate agents are using artificial intelligence to virtually enhance photos in real estate listings. While virtual staging of homes for sale can move listings more quickly, some agents say transparency remains an issue.

Zillow

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A September dip in mortgage rates paired with a stock market bump gave a boost to what is traditionally the start of the slow season in real estate, showing activity is unseasonably resilient after a lackluster August.

Redfin

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Just 25.3% of U.S. homes that sold in September went for more than their final list price, down from 28.5% a year earlier and the lowest September level in six years. 

Homes.com

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There’s more to a listing than a home’s condition. A solid neighborhood with features such as a low crime rate and highly rated schools can boost sales prices.

CALIFORNIA ASSN. OF REALTORS®

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California home sales rebounded in September, increasing modestly on both a monthly and yearly basis, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® reported this week.

Market Watch

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​The recent housing market data has been good news for prospective home buyers: Home prices fell for the first time this year in July 2025 and mortgage rates hit their lowest point in a year, according to data from the latest S&P Cotality Case-Schiller Home Price Index.

Associated Press

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California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bipartisan bill that aims to prevent the state’s home insurer of last resort, The California FAIR Plan, from running out of money following a natural disaster.

CNBC

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Homeowners and real estate agents are using artificial intelligence to virtually enhance photos in real estate listings. “Virtual staging” of homes for sales can move listings to market more quickly and tailor the look to entice potential buyers, but some agents say transparency remains an issue.

Investopedia

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A new report shows an outsize share of buyers are paying all cash, extending a pandemic-era trend that's contributed to the affordability crisis that has stalled the housing market. 

Yahoo Finance

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With 30-year fixed home loan rates remaining over 6% for three years now, 5% home loan rates are a faint memory. Most housing experts do not expect mortgage rates to decline significantly further through the end of this year, and any decreases in 2026 are expected to be gradual.

Realtor.com

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As traditional shopping malls across America struggle to stay relevant in the age of e-commerce, a surprising trend is taking root: transforming once-bustling retail hubs into vibrant mixed-use communities that bring much-needed housing to strained real estate markets.

Realtor.com

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Mortgage rates edged up as markets assessed the impact of the government shutdown, which began this week just as the Federal Reserve awaited key economic data to guide its next policy moves.

National Assn. of REALTORS®

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Slightly lower mortgage rates may have given more home buyers the confidence to move forward on a home purchase in August, offering a hopeful sign for more closed sales this fall.

C.A.R.

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The U.S. government shutdown starting Oct. 1 affects housing and mortgage programs including Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, HUD, FHA single-family loans, VA home loans, and the National Flood Insurance Program. 

LAist

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Under the new Mortgage Forebearance Act, owners of residential properties up to four units affected by the Palisades and Eaton fires in Los Angeles County will have more time -- up to a year -- to pay their mortgages. 

Realtor.com

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Mortgage giant Fannie Mae has issued new projections forecasting that mortgage rates will finally fall below 6% by the end of 2026, a level that has not been reached in three years. 

CNBC

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Sales of newly built homes rose a much larger-than-expected 20.5% in August compared with July to the highest level since January 2022, according to the U.S. Census. It is also the largest one-month gain since August 2022. 

Marketplace

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Even with mortgage rates coming down, creating a flurry of refinancing activity, home sellers are pulling back. August saw a 1.4% drop in active listings — while new listings dropped 1.1%, according to new data from Redfin. 

CALIFORNIA ASSN. OF REALTORS®

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A modest improvement in mortgage rates and stabilizing home prices boosted California home sales in August, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® said.

California Governor's Office

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Governor Newsom issued an emergency proclamation for Calaveras and Tuolumne Counties to assist in recovery from the recent TCU Lightning Complex Fires. This declaration triggered California's anti-price-gouging law limiting rent increases to no more than 10 percent above pre-emergency levels. 

CNBC

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The national average credit score, which had been steadily increasing for over a decade, fell for the second consecutive year, according to a new report from FICO.

CALIFORNIA ASSN. OF REALTORS®

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Following an essentially flat housing market in 2025, California home sales are forecast to inch up in 2026, with the median home price expected to reach a new projected record of $905,000, according to a housing and economic forecast released by the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®.

Reuters

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U.S. homebuilder sentiment fell unexpectedly in August, slipping back to its lowest level in more than two-and-a-half years, with more than a third of residential construction firms cutting prices and roughly two-thirds of them offering some form of incentive to lure buyers sidelined by still-high mortgage rates and economic uncertainty.

Nerd Wallet

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Mortgage interest rates are lower today, continuing the mostly downward trend we've seen this September. The average interest rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage ticked down to 6.08% APR, according to rates provided to NerdWallet by Zillow.

CNBC

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A sharp drop in mortgage interest rates finally got some homebuyers off the fence, spurring the strongest week of borrower demand since 2022, with both purchase and refinance applications moving higher.

Realtor.com

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Inflation ticked up 2.9% in August compared to a year earlier in a troubling sign for consumers, but not enough to prevent a Federal Reserve interest rate cut next week as more alarm bells ring in the labor market.

Realtor.com

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A new law, the Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act, effective March 5, 2026, will prohibit the abuse of what's known as trigger leads — when credit bureaus sell a borrower’s information immediately after a mortgage credit inquiry. The law makes it illegal for credit bureaus to do so without consumers' consent.

CNBC

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The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage notched its biggest one-day drop in more than a year, with the average rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage at just around 6.29%, according to Mortgage News Daily — a big leap from the under 3% levels near the start of the pandemic.

Newsweek

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The Black homeownership rate fell to 43.9 percent in the second quarter of the year, a new Redfin report found—its lowest level since the fourth quarter of 2021. It was also down from the 45.3 percent recorded a year earlier, showing that the recent slowdown of the U.S. housing market has not helped Black households get onto the property ladder.

Redfin

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The number of homeowner households in America fell 0.1% year over year to an estimated 86.2 million in the second quarter. While that’s a marginal decline, it’s the first since 2016. 

CBS News

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For the first time since 2017, the U.S. is seeing a spike in foreign investors, with a significant number of international buyers focusing on California. A recent NAR study shows international investors purchased 78,100 properties, spending $56 billion across the United States from April 2024 to March 2025, an annual increase of 44 percent.

NerdWallet

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This year, with less competition and growing inventory, buyers have more negotiating power. If you didn’t luck out during your summer house hunt, be grateful. This fall just might be the best window for home buyers in the past five years.

CNBC

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Mortgage rates fell again last week, but not enough to pull overall demand out of the rut it’s been in for the past month. Total mortgage application volume dropped 1.2% last week compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index.

MarketWatch

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A key measure of inflation, the PCE index, rose 0.2 percent in July, suggesting persistent price pressures tied to higher U.S. tariffs, but the increase probably wasn't big enough to dissuade the Federal Reserve from cutting interest rates next month. 

MPA Mag

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The gap between mortgage rates and 10-year Treasury yields has reached its narrowest point in more than three years, down to 2.26 percentage points as of Aug. 22, a sign that mortgage rates can fall independently of Fed decisions. 

CBS News

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In a sign of frustration over how long it's taking to find a buyer, more homeowners are pulling their property off the market rather than risk lowering the asking price, according to a report by Realtor.com that showed a 38 percent jump in delistings in June and a 48 percent rise this year.​

NPR

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An increase in the number of homes for sale nationwide has allowed more homebuyers to purchase, and home prices are softening slightly in some areas, including Los Angeles and Sacramento.​

CNN

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Fed Chair Jerome Powell said that the job market is on such shaky ground that the Federal Reserve may soon need to cut interest rates to support the economy at a key central banking forum.​

Axios

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U.S. homebuilders started construction on new homes at the quickest pace in five months in July, construction rising more than 5% in July to an annualized rate of 1.4 million homes, the U.S. Census said.​

CALIFORNIA ASSN. OF REALTORS®

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California’s spring homebuying season continued to fall short of expectations, as elevated mortgage rates and growing economic concerns restrained home sales from year ago levels for the fourth straight month, the CALIFORNIA ASSN. OF REALTORS® said.

Realtor.com

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Single-family housing starts rose 2.8% last month from June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 939,000, the U.S. Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development reported Tuesday. The July figure was up 7.8% from a year earlier.

Bankrate.com

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U.S. home prices just keep setting new records, although the pace of growth has been slowing. The latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index shows annual home-price growth increased in May by 2.3 percent, down from April’s 2.7 percent, and continues a trend in recent months of a gradual cooling of appreciation.

National Law Review

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Congress passed the Homebuyers Privacy Protection Act, which amends the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) to restrict consumer reporting agencies from sharing “trigger leads” generated in connection with residential mortgage credit inquiries.

CALIFORNIA ASSN. OF REALTORS®

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Elevated interest rates and higher home prices curbed California housing affordability in the second quarter of 2025, according to the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®.

CNBC

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Total mortgage application volume dropped 3.8% last week compared with the previous week, with the average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances, $806,500 or less, decreasing to 6.83% from 6.84%, with points falling to 0.60 from 0.62, including the origination fee, for loans with a 20% down payment.

National Mortgage Professional

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Data from First American Data & Analytics Real House Price Index (RHPI) and analysis from First American Deputy Chief Economist Odeta Kushi suggest mortgage professionals should expect a market defined by slower, more uneven price movements — not the kind of widespread crash that followed the last major housing boom.

Forbes

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Consumer sentiment improved above expectations last month to a five-month high as Americans appear to be less worried about inflation—even as it spiked this month—according to the University of Michigan’s monthly survey.

SF Gate

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California’s housing markets vary by region, but on average, the major metros in California aren’t experiencing the same slumps as the rest of the country. In parts of the Bay Area, home sales have even reached their highest levels since the peak of the pandemic housing boom.

National Mortgage Professional

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The new VA Home Loan Reform Act permanently allows veterans to directly compensate their real estate agents, ensuring they can compete on equal footing in today’s competitive housing market.

MyNewsLA

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The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approve an ordinance Tuedsay extending price-gouging protections on local rental housing through Aug. 30. On Jan. 7, a state of emergency was declared in the county following the deadly wildfires, activating price-gouging protections that barred price hikes of 10 percent or more on critical goods and services, including housing. While the declaration remains in effect, the county can continue to extend the protections every 30 days.

SF Gate

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Californians have long carried some of the nation’s heaviest tax burdens, with many homeowners squeezed by the $10,000 cap on state and local tax (SALT) deductions. But with Congress approving a $40,000 cap, a significant portion of the state’s homeowners stand to gain meaningful financial relief. 

Jefferson Public Radio

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Prices and interest rates have stalled out at unaffordable highs, keeping buyers at bay. Sellers, unable to fetch the still-higher prices they want, are backing out of the market in droves. The result is a housing market stuck in molasses, with a slow down in new listings, stagnant sales and an uptick in deals cancelled at the last minute.higan’s monthly survey.

Forbes

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Consumer sentiment improved above expectations last month to a five-month high as Americans appear to be less worried about inflation—even as it spiked this month—according to the University of Michigan’s monthly survey.

SF Chronicle

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Just 1 in 5 San Francisco households can afford to buy a mid-priced home in their city, where the typical price tag is about $1.29 million. But back in 2005, only 1 in 10 households could afford a mid-priced home.

NBC Bay Area

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Most homeowners say they won't buy or sell a home this year, no matter where mortgage rates go, according to a Bankrate survey. Fifty-four percent of U.S. homeowners wouldn't feel comfortable selling at any mortgage rate in 2025, up 12 percentage points from last year. A similar share of homeowners, 51%, say they wouldn't feel comfortable buying a new home, either.

Pasadena Now

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California’s housing market showed signs of life in June, reversing three straight months of sales declines, according to the California Association of REALTORS®.

Realtor.com

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The construction of new homes scaled back for the month of June as single-family housing starts were at a rate of 883,000, according to the latest data released by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development.

CNBC

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Renewed concerns over tariffs and the broader economy drove Treasury yields higher last week, and mortgage rates followed. As a result, total mortgage application volume dropped 10% last week compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

MarketWatch

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Home-builder confidence was up marginally in July, as demand for homes remains weak and as builders ramp up price cuts in a frenzied attempt to boost sales.