June 26, 2026
Overview
- The Realtor.com® economics team video update gives you the relevant economic and real estate information you need to know each week, every Friday, to navigate the housing market as a homebuyer, home seller, or industry professional.
- For the week ending June 12, Realtor.com® Chief Economist Danielle Hale
- breaks down the implications of the 21st Century Road to Housing Act, which passed Congress with overwhelming bipartisan support but saw its planned signing abruptly postponed. She also covers mortgage rates, which ticked up 2 basis points to 6.49%, with colleague Jake Krimmel and Sr. Economist Anthony Smith providing more detail in the weekly mortgage rate update video.
- She then covers May new-home sales, which came in at a 580,000 annual pace, down 7.3% from April and 6.8% from a year ago, with Sr. Economist Joel Berner noting steadier prices and rising builder caution on spec construction, a point that aligns with weaker new-home construction data in the same month. Danielle also highlights the latest weekly housing data from Realtor.com, showing new listings up 3.2%, active inventory topping 1.1 million, and homes selling at the same pace as a year ago for a fourth straight week.
- Turning to investors, Danielle covers the June Investor Report from Sr. Economist Hannah Jones, showing investors made up 11.3% of purchases in 2025, with the bigger story being a dramatic shift in who is buying: mega-investors fell to just 7.5%, their smallest share since at least 2011.
- Finally, Danielle covers Anthony Smith’s Seven Levels of Luxury Report, making the point that luxury is not one national price tag, with entry points ranging from roughly $759,000 in Huntsville, Alabama to nearly $25 million in Aspen. She also highlights his Las Vegas Luxury Spotlight, where a $1 million-to-$2 million home buys far more space than it does nationally, helping keep California demand in the mix.
- Find all the details, including full reports and our housing data for download at realtor.com/research. You can also follow us on X (formerly Twitter) for real-time updates. And Instagram @realtordotcomecon for graphics.
Reports and articles referenced:
Housing data for download:
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT:
- A landmark housing bill made it through Congress this week, but a last-minute signing delay has raised questions about what’s ahead for this proposal that aims to address housing supply to lower housing costs.
- I’m Danielle Hale, Chief Economist at Realtor.com®. This week I’m watching the implications of the housing bill, in addition to the latest mortgage-rate outlook, weekly housing trends, and new research on investors and luxury. Let’s get into what’s moving the market this week.
- First, Congress passed the 21st Century Road to Housing Act with overwhelming bipartisan support—85 to 5 in the Senate and 358 to 32 in the House—but the planned signing was abruptly postponed. My take is that this looks more like a delay than a derailment. The strong majorities behind the bill suggest it is still likely to become law. Many of the law’s benefits will take time to reach builders’ plans and projects, so I think the market will be able to navigate this largely in stride.
- New-home sales were softer in May, registering a 580,000 annual pace, down 7.3% from April and 6.8% from a year ago, while months’ supply rose to 10.3. My colleague Joel Berner noted that prices were steadier, dropping just 0.6% and an increase in the share of for-sale new homes “not yet started” suggests that builders are being cautious about spec building. A point that aligns with weaker new-home construction data in the same month.
- On financing, the Freddie Mac 30-year fixed rate for a mortgage ticked up 2 basis points to 6.49% as the cautious optimism of a resolution in the Middle East was offset by inflation risks and a steady Fed Chaired by Kevin Warsh that was blunt about its commitment in his first meeting saying that, “The Committee will deliver price stability.” My colleague Jake Krimmel discussed mortgage rates in depth with Anthony Smith in our Weekly Mortgage Rate Update Video.
- Our weekly housing trends offer more evidence that the market is finding its footing. Although the median list price continues to be soft, down 3.1% year over year, the supply picture remains decent. New listings rose 3.2% from a year ago, active inventory topped 1.1 million homes and remained 1.7% above last year. Finally, homes sold at the same pace as a year ago for a fourth straight week. These are the relatively steady kind of conditions that could foster more home sales.
- Turning to investors, Hannah Jones’s Investor Report shows investors bought about 534,000 homes in 2025 and made up 11.3% of purchases, slightly above the prior year in both the count and as a share of sales.
- But the bigger shift is who is buying: small investors accounted for 62.7% of purchases while mega-investors fell to just 7.5%, their smallest share since at least 2011. Mega investors had already begun to pull back from their pandemic-era high shares, and proposals to further limit their involvement may have compounded this trend.
- And finally, on the high end, Anthony Smith’s Seven Levels of Luxury Report makes the point that luxury is not one national price tag. Nationally, it now takes about $1.28 million to break into the top 10% of listings, but the luxury entry point starts near $759,000 in Huntsville, Alabama and rises to nearly $25 million in Aspen.
- His Las Vegas luxury spotlight shows why Vegas stands out: luxury starts just above $1.2 million there, but a $1 million-to-$2 million home still buys far more space than it does nationally, helping keep California demand in the mix.
- Next week there will not be a video as we take time to celebrate America at 250. We’ll have plenty of insights for you at realtor.com/research including a look at how the Federal government has played a role in the housing market. We’ll also release our June monthly housing data, and cover the latest readings of the Case-Shiller index and the jobs report—a key input in the Fed’s decision making.
- You can find all the details including the Realtor.com Market Clock, full reports and our housing data for download, at realtor.com/research. You can also follow us on X (formerly Twitter) for real-time updates. And Instagram for graphics.
- I hope you enjoy celebrating America’s quarter century of Independence.
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