Housing market experiences significant price drops amidst rising mortgage rates.
US home prices have experienced their biggest annualized drop in over 11 years, with the median existing-home price falling 1.7% to $388,800 last month, according to the National Association of Realtors. The slump comes amid a rapid rise in mortgage rates, with the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage climbing from 5.25% to 6.35% over the past year, likely weighing on demand and discouraging people locked in at lower mortgage rates from selling their houses. Sales activity also dropped 3.4% between March and April and over 23% year-on-year.