San Antonio had the highest cancellation share, while Virginia Beach saw the biggest year-over-year jump.
New data from Redfin shows that home-purchase agreement cancellations reached a record rate over the summer.
By the numbers:
In July, approximately 58,000 U.S. home-purchase agreements fell through, representing 15.3% of all homes that went under contract that month.
This figure is up from 14.5% a year earlier and marks the highest cancellation rate for July since records began in 2017.
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Dig deeper:
According to Redfin, home purchases are falling through at higher rates as elevated prices, steep mortgage costs, and broader economic uncertainty leave many buyers uneasy.
With more inventory available than in recent years, buyers often have the upper hand and feel less urgency to commit.
As a result, many people walk away during the inspection period -- either because a more appealing home comes on the market or they uncover issues they're unwilling to address.
What they're saying:
"I recently had an older first-time buyer get cold feet the week before the deal was supposed to close," Cleveland Redfin Premier real estate agent Bonnie Phillips said in a news release. "It was a beautiful house, we got it for the price she wanted and there were no issues in the inspection, but her neighbors convinced her that owning is too much of a hassle and she should rent instead."
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By the numbers:
In July, San Antonio saw 730 home-purchase agreements fall through, accounting for 22.7% of all pending sales -- the highest share among the metros analyzed by Redfin. Following San Antonio were Fort Lauderdale, FL (21.3%), Jacksonville, FL (19.9%), Atlanta (19.7%), and Tampa, FL (19.5%). Redfin's analysis covered the 50 largest U.S. metro areas, with 44 included based on sufficient data.
Florida and Texas, the nation's leaders in new home construction, are seeing elevated cancellation rates as some buyers feel confident they can find alternatives that better meet their needs. In Florida specifically, concerns about rising natural disasters, coupled with surging insurance premiums and HOA fees, are also causing buyers to reconsider.
At the other end of the spectrum, cancellations were lowest in Nassau County, NY (5.1%), followed by Montgomery County, PA (8.2%), Milwaukee (8.3%), New York City (9.5%), and Seattle (10.2%).
By the numbers:
In Virginia Beach, VA, nearly 500 home-purchase agreements fell through in July, representing 16.1% of homes that went under contract. That's a 3.6 percentage-point jump from 12.5% a year earlier -- the largest increase among all metros analyzed. Following Virginia Beach were Newark, NJ (+3.3 ppts), Baltimore (+3 ppts), San Antonio (+2.8 ppts), and Houston (+2.8 ppts).
A separate Redfin analysis shows Virginia Beach has the highest concentration of homeowners with VA loans among major metros, with Baltimore also ranking near the top.