Housing inventory

Sales of previously owned homes unexpectedly slumped for a fourth month to the weakest in more than two years, signaling higher prices and tight supplies continue to squeeze demand, a National Association of Realtors report showed.

Mortgage applications increased 4.2% from one week earlier, rising for the first time in over a month, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

An improved economy, a healthy labor market and the large population of millennials should have accelerated home sales much higher, but all hope for more transactions this year is not yet lost, according to the NAR.

It's happening in larger, pricier housing markets: Buyers are starting to get fatigued, indicated by modest drops in existing home sales, mostly in competitive Western states like California and Washington.

Here's a look at the cities where house hunters and sellers have been the busiest during this summer's home buying season.

Fannie Mae decreased its 2018 origination forecast for the fourth time this year in anticipation of more upward pressure on rates, and housing weakness that persists despite increased overall economic strength.

San Antonio’s housing market grew even hotter amid July’s sweltering temperatures, demonstrating the strength of the local economy but posing a threat to aspiring middle-class homeowners.

Purchase-loan share held steady month-to-month for the first time this year, even though it is still above year-ago levels in line with a seasonal decline, but growth remains in the forecast.

There would be over six million more new homes built in the last decade if new construction remained at the same pace prior to the housing boom, according to Zillow.

The reliance on nonconventional financing to fund new single-family housing is dropping, with the share accounting for less than a third of the market for the second year in a row.