In its first meeting of 2025, the Federal Reserve announced today that it will leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged. This follows three consecutive rate cuts, by half a percentage point in September and a quarter-point in both November and December.

The market sputtered amid high mortgage rates, high prices, and homeowners with lower rates who have no plans to move.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) said on Thursday its Pending Home Sales Index, based on signed contracts, fell 5.5% last month to 74.2 from a downwardly revised 78.5 in November. Pending home sales fell 5.

NAR forecasts mortgage rates to stabilize near 6% in 2025, likely establishing a new normal. Inventory will gradually grow.

In November, the National Association of Realtors reported that its membership was 1,526,631. How many members renewed by the Jan. 1 deadline is unclear, but some Massachusetts agents have stepped ...

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a roughly flat open on Friday, with stocks likely to show a lack of direction

Mortgage rates in the US dropped for a second straight week.Most Read from BloombergManhattan’s Morning Commute Time Drops With New Congestion TollTrump's Federal Funding Pause Threatens State Financials Housing Aid Uncertain After Trump’s Spending Freeze MemoUS Students’ Reading Scores Drop to Worst in More Than 20 YearsTexas HOA Charged With Discrimination for Banning Section 8 RentersThe average for 30-year loans was 6.

The average 30-year mortgage rate was 6.95% this week compared with 6.96% a week earlier, according to Freddie Mac data.

The Pending Home Sales Index, which tracks contract signings on existing homes, dropped 5.5% from November to December as mortgage rates hover near 7%.

Mortgage rates pulled back slightly this week, with the 30-year fixed rate averaging 7.03 percent, down from 7.06 percent the previous week, according to Bankrate’s latest lender survey. The Federal Reserve held off cutting rates on Wednesday and could keep to that stance until the inflation picture becomes clearer.

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage in the U.S. eased for the second week in a row, but remains just below 7%, little relief for prospective home shoppers looking ahead to the spring homebuying sea

Although this month’s Housing Market Index rating of 47 falls slightly short of the NAHB’s benchmark of 51, the index’s steady increase since August suggests that single-family developers are growing increasingly optimistic about the future of the U.S. economy.