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MortgagePoint » Your Trusted Source for Mortgage Banking and Servicing News 54 December 2025 J O U R N A L Trump administration is now proposing another idea aimed at making housing more affordable: let homeowners take their mortgage rate with them when they move. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHA) Director Bill Pulte said on X that the administration is "actively evaluat- ing" so-called "portable mortgages." One reason homeowners are reluc- tant to move, which keeps homes off the market, is that a new mortgage would be more expensive. A Redfin analysis of FHFA data shows that just over half of homeowners with a mortgage have a rate below 4%. However, average mortgage rates have been between 6% and 7% for the last few years. Enabling people to keep their lower mortgage rates could potentially encourage them to move and free up supply. How Would It Work? Sam May, Co-Founder of Hompwr, suggests both the portable mortgage or 50-year-mortgage ideas could provide options for homebuyers: "Having both a portable assumable mortgage and a 50-year loan available will help to bridge the gap between the haves (those with a mortgage at 3%) and have-nots (those with mortgages of 6% or higher). So first-time buyers who don't have that 3% mortgage have a tool they can use to compete on a payment level and increase their buying power in an unlocked, more active housing market. Otherwise, affordability remains an issue, and they won't be able to compete with somebody who's trying to move their 3% mortgage over." Scarpero.com mortgage broker Carlos Scarpeo points out that, should the idea move forward, it will require significant changes to the financial sys- tem, as the idea is "not something that could be changed overnight" due to U.S. mortgages being "securitized and not held by the banks." An FHFA representative told CNN that the agency was studying a "wide va- riety of options" to lower housing costs. POTENTIAL HOMEBUYERS REMAINING ON THE SIDELINES T he median U.S. home-sale price jumped 2.3% during the four weeks ended November 16, the highest gain in seven months, accord- ing to a new data from Redfin, the real estate brokerage powered by Rocket. Home sale prices are rising despite poor homebuying demand because total inventory is shrinking. Still, it's crucial to note that home prices are growing slow- er than salaries and inflation, meaning homebuying is becoming marginally more affordable. Sales of pending homes decreased by 0.8% on an annual basis, which is a slight decrease but the largest in four months. Economic instability and high housing costs are keeping many potential buyers on the sidelines; mortgage rates are rising after falling to their lowest point in a year, and home prices are still rising. Homes are also taking longer to sell; the median home that goes under contract does so in 49 days, the greatest stretch for this time of year since 2019. At the same time, total supply is losing steam. Active listings rose 6.1% year over year (YoY), the weakest growth since February 2024. Prices are being supported by the declining number of available properties. However, not all places are seeing an increase in sale prices. The median home-sale price decreased in 18 of the 50 most populous U.S. metros, the most in over two years (tied with the 4 weeks ended November 2). Prices fell most in: 1. Fort Worth, Texas (-3.9% YoY) 2. Dallas (-3.3%) 3. Jacksonville, Florida (-3.3%) 4. Miami (-2.5%) 5. Seattle (-2.2%) "Buyers may be able to find a deal," said Jonathan Buch, a Redfin Premier agent in West Palm Beach, Florida. "In today's slow market, the people who are selling are typically the ones who have to because of a divorce or job relocation. Many of those people are willing to sell at a lower price than they could get if they waited for demand to pick up. Still, homes that are fairly priced and move-in ready—especially the ones with pools— are selling quickly, with bidding wars." Sale prices rose most in the Rust Belt and Midwest, with prices increasing most in Cincinnati (10.5%), Pittsburgh (9.5%), Detroit (8.4%), Milwaukee (8.3%), and Cleveland (8%). Key Findings — National Metrics Metros with biggest YoY increases Metros with biggest YoY decreases Median sale price Cincinnati (10.5%) Pittsburgh (9.5%) Detroit (8.4%) Milwaukee (8.3%) Cleveland (8%) Fort Worth, TX (-3.9%) Jacksonville, FL (-3.3%) Dallas (-3.3%) Miami (-2.5%) Seattle (-2.2%) Pending sales West Palm Beach, FL (21.2%) Cleveland (9.7%) Miami (9.4%) Phoenix (8.6%) Riverside, CA (6.7%) San Jose, CA (-18.2%) Seattle (-17.7%) Tampa, FL (-14.2%) Las Vegas (-12.5%) San Diego (-9.7%) New listings Montgomery County, PA (14.2%) Minneapolis (13.9%) Cincinnati (11.9%) Phoenix (11.4%) Pittsburgh (11.1%) Tampa, FL (-15.6%) Orlando, FL (-9.9%) Fort Lauderdale, FL (-9.2%) Sacramento, CA (-8.6%) Riverside, CA (-8.4%)