Heading into 2026, economists from the National Association of Realtors were expecting a turnaround. Now, not so much.
In the weeks following the launch of a military campaign in Iran, mortgage rates spiked enough that a buyer purchasing a median-priced home in the U.S. lost about $25,000 in purchase power. The shift forced experts to revise forecasts and agents to hustle harder than ever.
To understand what’s going on, scroll through the interactive timeline below. It shows average rates at different times during the year and the geopolitical factors that caused those rates to move.
Note: This interactive timeline was made with the assistance of Claude AI.
