September Housing Data: Listings Rise, Contracts Fall

September’s housing data describe two markets at once: sellers are adding inventory and cutting asking prices while buyers are retreating under mortgage rates above 7%. The national median list price fell 1.4% year over year to $419,250, yet that decline is too small to offset the payment shock. More important for the next month is the widening gap between available homes and homes going under contract.

Key Takeaways Realtor.com counted 1,162,000 active listings in September 2026, up 5.4% from a year earlier and 9.1% below the 2017-2019 norm. Pending listings fell 4.1% year over year and 6.2% month over month in September 2026, the sharpest annual drop since March 2025. One in five listings h…