Pending home sales hit a record low in September

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1. Home prices tick up 0.25% in September

Home prices rose 0.25% in September from August, accelerating slightly from the prior month’s 0.21% gain, according to Redfin’s index. Annual growth reached 3.8%, the fastest pace since June 2025, and prices increased in 34 of the 50 largest metro areas.

Texas markets continued to cool. San Antonio posted the steepest annual decline among major metros at 2.1%, followed by Dallas at 1.5%. Fort Worth had the nation’s largest monthly drop, at 0.9%.

2. Pending home sales hit record low in September

Pending home sales fell 7.3% in September from August to a record-low index of 66, the NAR reported. Contracts were down 11.3% from a year earlier, as the average 30-year mortgage rate climbed from about 6.8% to 7.6% during the month.

All four regions declined. The West saw the steepest drops, with sales down 9.2% monthly and 15% annually, followed by the South, down 8.2% monthly and 12% annually.

Texas fared better than most. Austin’s 5.9% annual decline was the seventh-smallest among the 50 largest metros, and San Antonio’s 7.1% drop ranked 10th.

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3. Catch up quick

⚖️ Alexander brothers face possible life sentences in rape case. (NBC)

👔 Former Douglas Elliman western region head Peter Hernandez joins Side. (TRD)

🧠 Zillow integrates its housing intelligence into Claude. (Zillow)

🚨 Compass sues former ERA president Alex Vidal over move to RE/MAX. (RealEstateNews)

🔄 Former eXp agents settle sexual assault lawsuit two days into trial. (Inman)

4. Side joins HouseCanary’s Google listings program

Side has partnered with HouseCanary to feature its affiliated agents’ active listings in a dedicated carousel on Google mobile search, HouseCanary announced Tuesday.

The program covers more than 600 agents across 19 states at no cost to them. Listings flow through My State MLS and link to property details, agent information and contact options. Participating agents also get free access to HouseCanary’s AI platform.

The deal builds on HouseCanary’s agreements with multiple MLSs as Google expands its home-search offerings nationwide. Brokerages can opt in or out, depending on local MLS rules.

The expansion comes as HouseCanary restructures under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Its proposed plan targets an exit by the end of 2026, subject to court approval.

5. Texas inventory climbs as home sales slow

Active listings rose 2.8% statewide in the third quarter, with inventory up in 18 of the state’s 26 metros, according to the Texas Realtors housing report.

The statewide median price slipped 0.4% year over year to $333,628, but prices rose in 15 metros, led by Abilene (+22%), Texarkana (+13.3%) and Beaumont-Port Arthur (+10.7%). The state’s four largest metros all saw prices dip between 1% and 1.2%.

Closed sales fell 2.4% to 87,862, declining in about half of the metros. Odessa posted the biggest gain at 26.6%, while Corpus Christi recorded the steepest drop at 12.1%.

Statewide months of inventory edged up to 5.5 from 5.4 a year ago, just above the 4-to-5-month range generally considered balanced.

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