US Housing Market: Tight Inventory and High Mortgage Rates Impact Sales

Mortgage rates hit a new 2023 high of 7.12% due to the debt-ceiling drama pushing bond yields up, while purchase application data had a second straight week of declines. Active housing inventory saw some decent growth last week, rising by 8,914 week to week, even though new listing data is still trending at all-time lows in 2023. The week ahead will focus on the bond market reaction to the debt ceiling agreement, watching to see if the spreads improve for mortgage rates and jobs data.