Realtors are facing an unprecedented number of indecisive buyers as the real estate market becomes more challenging. According to a recent report from Redfin, nearly 56,000 home-purchase agreements fell through in June, representing 15% of all homes that were under contract during that month. This marks the highest cancellation rate for any June recorded by the real estate service.
Julie Zubiate, a Redfin Premier real estate agent based in the San Francisco Bay Area, attributes the increase in buyer hesitation to a more discerning clientele struggling with rising market prices. “They’re backing out due to minor issues because the monthly costs associated with buying a home today are just too high to rationalize not getting everything on their must-have list,” she explained.
Similarly, Rafael Corrales, a Redfin agent in Miami, described witnessing troubling situations, including last-minute deal cancellations over trivial matters. In Miami alone, around 2,500 home purchases were canceled in June, constituting about 17.6% of the homes under contract. According to Corrales, the primary concern remains affordability.
In June, the median home sale price reached an all-time high of $442,525, with the average 30-year mortgage rate hovering at 6.92%. In addition to the elevated prices, prospective buyers are contending with burdensome insurance costs, property taxes, and homeowners association fees—factors that have been intensified by inflation.
This widespread affordability crisis has resulted in the most significant decline in home sales in eight months, with Redfin reporting a 0.5% drop in monthly sales for June—the largest decrease since October 2023. Year-over-year, home sales decreased by 1.1% and were down 21.5% compared to levels seen before the pandemic.