The U.S. housing market lost momentum during the critical 2026 spring selling season as higher mortgage rates, economic uncertainty, and fallout from the Iran war combined to dampen buyer demand and discourage homeowners from listing their properties. According to Zillow's May 2026 Housing Market Report, both home sales and new listings trailed year-earlier levels during what is traditionally one of the...

After spending much of its first decade laying the groundwork for growth, Maryland-based Schaefer Homes emerged as the eighth-fastest-growing homebuilder by residential sales volume in HousingWire’s inaugural HousingWire Homebuilder Rankings.  Jim Schaefer, CEO of Schaefer Homes, founded the company in 2016 after several years in finance. Schaefer, a third-generation builder, initially operated the...

Berkshire Hathaway’s planned acquisition of Taylor Morrison has opened the door for us to explore a set of uber-themed questions: about homebuilders’ present and future valuations, leadership and scale, and to the question that public homebuilder boards may now be asking: whether to build toward greater scale or join it. A related question may be harder to answer, because it dwells in an...

Achieve has expanded its fixed-rate home equity line of credit (HELOC) program, raising the maximum loan amount to $700,000 and lowering its lowest available annual percentage rate to 5.5% for qualified borrowers, the digital personal finance company said Wednesday. The changes, which took effect June 2, also increase borrowing flexibility by allowing qualified homeowners to access up to 90% of their...

Mortgage lenders are rolling out new credit scoring models, but in the secondary market, investors and credit rating agencies are awaiting additional performance data while developing workarounds to keep loans moving through the system. Susan Hosterman, senior director for North America RMBS and covered bonds at Fitch Ratings, said the company can currently rate securitizations that feature the new...

Affordable housing advocates are warning that proposed reductions to several key U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs could make it harder for communities to address persistent affordability challenges and expand housing supply. The National Association of Local Housing Finance Agencies (NALHFA), which represents state and local agencies that finance affordable housing...

These homeowners knew exactly the joyful feeling they wanted to evoke in their 1921 Tudor-style home in Minneapolis, but they needed a designer to help them put it all together. Enter Emily Pueringer, who helped them infuse their home with Scandinavian-inspired cheerfulness and color. Beyond...

Persistent Inflation, Iran War Concerns Weigh on U.S. Housing Market According to new national data from Realtor.com, U.S. home prices recorded their sharpest year-over-year declines in a decade in May 2026 as persistent inflation continued to weigh on the housing market, even as increased buyer activity and seller pragmatism signaled a gradual rebalancing. The housing sector, like the broader economy,...

Image Morgan Stanley’s Adam Kramer says the industry is now clearly nearing the end of its historic construction...

PulteGroup, ranked as the third-largest homebuilder by sales volume in HousingWire’s Homebuilder Rankings, held a grand opening for its first Florida Del Webb Explore community on May 30. PulteGroup announced the Del Webb Explore brand, a twist on PulteGroup’s popular age-restricted Del Webb communities, in March 2025. Del Webb Explore has similar resort-style amenities, such as sports courts, gyms...