The American housing market has found a particularly efficient way to process would-be buyers: leave them where they are.

September contracts for existing homes fell 7.3%, to the lowest index reading since records began in 2001. Economists polled by Reuters expected a 0.5% slip. The difference between those numbers is a whole lot of confidently opened spreadsheets having a bad morning.

For buyers, the arithmetic is less entertaining. Reuters reports that the average thirty-year fixed mortgage rate reached 7.40% last week, nearly a three-year high. Borrowing costs are tracking Treasury yields as the US-Israeli war with Iran fuels inflation. A conflict overseas reaches a house tour here and quietly adds itself to the monthly payment. It requires no bedroom of its own.

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Contracts fell in every region. Apparently the affordability problem has excellent national coverage. These are pending deals, not a count of completed sales; the transaction normally follows a month or two later. Even the promise of buying is retreating.

And the mortgage is only the entrance requirement. Our home-insurance piece follows another expense waiting inside.

The listing can offer abundant natural light, a spacious kitchen and a welcoming front porch. Financing is pleased to offer the current occupant continued enjoyment of all three.