Existing-home sales are down 5.4 percent from May but have tumbled 14.2 percent compared with the same month last year. Mortgage demand fell more than 6 percent last week, hitting the lowest level since 2000. Mortgage Bankers Association: Buyer demand for mortgage down 6 percent. The average rate for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage is 5.5 percent, according to Freddie Mac, up from 2.6 percent a year ago. The resulting squeeze on affordability is locking buyers out and leading to fewer deals, says NAR’s Lawrence Yun. The Federal Reserve is raising interest rates to cool an overheated economy, but such tinkering runs the risk of tipping the nation into recession and icing consumers out of the market. . . .
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