The Weekly Highlight 10.5.26
Updated: Oct 12
Home Court Insight Mortgage rates. Housing. Financing Strategies.
The Week of Oct 5th, 2026 - A quick breakdown of what's happening in mortgage and real estate — and what it could mean for buyers, sellers, and real estate professionals.
Mortgage Rate Update
Rates moved higher for the sixth straight week, even as this week's economic data gave the bond market a few reasons for optimism. More Info below...
Housing Market
Higher rates are putting more pressure on sellers—and buyers are gaining negotiating power because of it. More info below...
Financing Strategy
Changes to mortgage credit scoring could create better financing opportunities for some borrowers. See below for more info..
Mortgage Rate Update
*Currently the National Average for 30yr fixed mortgage rates = 7.49%
Mortgage rates moved higher again this week, marking the sixth consecutive weekly increase and the largest week-to-week jump since September 2022.
Interestingly, the economic news wasn't all bad for rates. September's jobs report came in well below expectations, unemployment ticked higher, inflation data was softer, and oil fell back below $90/barrel. Normally, that combination would provide some relief to the bond market and mortgage rates. Instead, bonds continued to struggle as investors remain concerned that additional Fed rate hikes may still be coming—even if the Fed holds off in October.
The good news? This week's data gave the bond market something it desperately needs: reasons to slow down the recent selloff. We'll need more weeks of similar data before calling it a trend, but after six straight weeks of rising rates,
I'll take any signs of potential stability we can get.
**Chart below-10yr US Treasury for the last few months. Mortgage Rates typically follow the 10yr UST, so as it goes up or down, usually mortgage rates do as well.(Red=good/lower, Green=bad/higher)
Housing Market
Higher mortgage rates continue to create challenges for sellers, but they're also creating opportunities for buyers.
Nationally, 20.8% of homes for sale had a price reduction in September, the highest share for any month since October 2022. Inventory also increased 5.4% to more than 1.16 million homes, while the typical asking price declined 1.4% from a year ago.
The takeaway isn't that every seller is desperate to sell—but buyers may have more leverage than they've had in quite some time. More inventory, longer market times and more price reductions can create opportunities to negotiate purchase price, seller-paid closing costs, or potentially both. As we talked about last week, today's higher-rate environment may be creating opportunities that simply weren't available when competition was stronger.
Make sure to check out the next section to see how this could help buyers.
Financing & Credit Strategy
There are some important changes happening behind the scenes with how mortgage lenders evaluate credit.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are moving forward with VantageScore 4.0 as an alternative to Classic FICO, with both scoring models now using the same loan-level pricing grid. That's important because the same borrower could potentially receive a different score depending on the credit model being used.
Early testing in the mortgage industry has shown that some borrowers are receiving more favorable results with VantageScore. That doesn't mean VantageScore will always be better—but it does give us another potential tool when reviewing a buyer's financing options. It's another example of why I believe in looking at the entire borrower profile and building the right game plan instead of assuming one score or one loan option tells the whole story.
My Take / The Game Plan
It's easy to look at six straight weeks of rising mortgage rates and assume there's nothing positive happening for buyers. But that's only looking at one piece of the puzzle.
Higher rates are putting pressure on sellers, price reductions are increasing, buyers have more negotiating power, and even the way we evaluate credit is evolving. The opportunity may look different today—but that doesn't mean it isn't there. Don't forget, if rates improve later, Rate REWIND gives us another play too.
My job is to help buyers look at the entire picture, understand their options and build a financing game plan that takes advantage of the market we're actually in—not the one we wish we were in.
Let's WIN Together! 🏀🏡
Have a Scenario? Let's Build a Game Plan.
Every buyer, seller and situation is different. If you're wondering how today's rates, seller concessions or financing strategies could work for you or one of your clients, let's run the numbers and build a game plan.
Questions are always welcome. Let's WIN Together!
More About JT Greene
I am licensed in North Carolina and South Carolina, and my team covers 46 states nationwide. Whether you're moving around the corner or across the country, I've got your back with custom mortgage planning and unbeatable service.
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