Easing mortgage rates are giving affordability a lift, and NAHB economists say this could signal stronger single-family construction in 2026 — great news for long-term inventory growth.📘 Beige Book Gains Importance Amid Shutdown DelaysThe Fed’s Beige Book — which summarizes business and economic conditions across all 12 districts — showed mixed momentum.

But Zillow’s recent analysis, as covered in Fast Company, suggests otherwise: to restore true affordability, mortgage rates would have to fall to 4.43% — a drop most economists consider unrealistic given the current economic landscape.

Local economist Carola Binder of UT-Austin described Austin’s labor market as “still a very low number” compared to statewide and national averages, with job growth across most major sectors.Overall, Austin’s steady employment base and diverse economy support a positive long-term outlook for housing demand in Austin and Central Texas.Here are the September 2025 stats for Austin and the greater metro:Here are the leasing stats for the City of Austin and the greater Austin metro area:A 30-year fixed rate mortgage is currently around 6.27% interest, down from the 7.26% high seen over the past year.

What we’ve uncovered is that price reductions are more common at the lower end of the market, while higher-priced sellers are more likely to hold firm," Jake Krimmel, senior economist at Realtor.com, told FOX Business'https://www.foxbusiness.com/real-estate/nearly-1-5-american-..."

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun expects lower rates plus higher inventory to support stronger sales in the coming months.

And then I saw this article from the Economist….We are NOT in a “loose” (aka accommodative) monetary policy.

Economists were caught offside, trying to predict the effects of tariff policy, and thought we would see a slowdown of the consumer in the face of higher prices.

From what I read in The Economist, listings with updated, compelling photos tend to outperform others significantly.

The bond market is surging this morning following a decisively weak August employment report, which showed just 22,000 jobs added—a far cry from the 80,000 economists had expected.

Some "economists" are even calling this current economy "stagflation lite" lol.