Realtors are experiencing a surge in buyers retracting from home purchases, reflecting an increasingly discerning clientele in a challenging real estate environment.
A recent Redfin report revealed that nearly 56,000 home-purchase agreements fell through in June, accounting for 15% of all homes that entered into contracts that month. This marks the highest percentage recorded for June by the real estate platform.
Julie Zubiate, a Redfin Premier real estate agent in the San Francisco Bay Area, attributes this trend to more selective buyers who are struggling with the high costs of homeownership. She noted, “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.”
In Miami, Redfin agent Rafael Corrales reported witnessing “nightmare scenarios” with last-minute cancellations driven by trivial details. In June alone, approximately 2,500 home purchases were canceled in the Miami area, representing about 17.6% of homes under contract that month. Corrales emphasized that the overarching issue remains affordability.
The median home sale price hit a historic high of $442,525 in June, accompanied by an average 30-year mortgage rate of 6.92%. Buyers are also contending with additional expenses such as insurance, property taxes, and HOA fees, all of which have been intensified by inflation.
This lack of affordability across the nation has led to the most significant decline in home sales in eight months, according to Redfin’s findings. Monthly home sales saw a dip of 0.5% in June, marking the largest decrease since October 2023. Year-over-year sales also fell by 1.1%, placing them 21.5% below pre-pandemic levels.