The Quick Read: Buyers have more room to negotiate after an inspection than they have had in years. NAR reported 4.9 months of supply for August, the highest in over ten years, and builders are cutting prices and offering incentives. But mortgage rates have risen for several weeks running, and every extra day of haggling carries that risk. As of September 28, 2026, my advice is to use the inspection period on purpose: know what you want before the report lands, and ask for it once.
Key Takeaways
- Existing-home sales ran at a 3.98 million annual pace in August, and supply hit its highest level in over ten years, per NAR’s report of September 10, 2026.
- Sellers gave concessions in 44.7% of U.S. sales in August, per Redfin’s report of September 18, 2026. That is a national average, and local markets differ widely.
- Freddie Mac’s survey put the 30-year fixed at 7.03% for the week of September 24, 2026, up from 6.66% four weeks earlier.
- The inspection is where that leverage becomes money or repairs. Slow, open-ended negotiation gives some of it back if rates keep climbing.
- Ask for what matters, decide your walk-away line before the report arrives, and lock your rate when you like the deal.
What Changed This Month
Supply is the story. NAR’s August existing-home sales report, released September 10, 2026, showed sales fell 2.0% from July to a 3.98 million annual rate. That is the first reading below 4.0 million since June 2025.
Inventory reached 1.62 million homes. That is up 5.9% from a year earlier and the first time it topped 1.6 million since November 2019. Months of supply, meaning how long the current stock would last at the current sales pace, rose to 4.9 from 4.6 in July. NAR calls that the highest in over ten years.
Prices did not collapse. The median existing-home price was $429,100, up 1.6% from a year ago. NAR also says sales are up 1.6% year to date. So “below 4 million” is a soft month, not a crash.
New construction is where sellers are pushing hardest. The Census Bureau’s August new-home sales release, dated September 24, 2026, showed sales at a 684,000 annual rate. There were 483,000 new homes for sale, or 8.5 months of supply. The median new-home price was $393,700, down 5.8% from a year earlier, though Census flags that change as inside the margin of error.
Builders are working for the sale. Inman’s September 25 report relays NAHB data showing 38% of builders cutting prices in September, up from 35% in August. The average cut held at 6%. Sixty-six percent are using incentives, the highest share since December.
Is This Really a Buyer’s Market?
Partly, and it depends on where you’re buying. Redfin’s August concessions report, dated September 18, 2026, found sellers gave concessions in 44.7% of U.S. sales. A year earlier the figure was 42.6%. It is the highest August share Redfin has recorded since at least 2020.
A concession is a seller paying something toward the deal, such as closing costs or repairs. About 15.8% of sales carried both a concession and a price cut.
Here is the catch. That is a national average, and the spread underneath it is huge. Redfin’s data puts the share at about 4% in San Jose and about 73% in Atlanta. Concessions are rare in San Jose, New York and San Francisco and more common across the Sun Belt.
My read: the national number tells you the direction of the market, not the terms of your deal. Your local inventory and your specific seller decide how much room you have. Ask your agent what concessions look like on comparable homes nearby. That answer beats any headline.
Why Supply Matters at the Inspection Table
The inspection is a contingency, a clause that lets you renegotiate or exit if the home has problems. When buyers were fighting over scarce listings, many waived it. Sellers held the cards, so a repair request was a risk to the deal.
More supply shifts that. A seller with a stale listing and few backup offers has more reason to say yes to a reasonable request. NAR says the ample supply gives buyers better opportunities to negotiate. Redfin says the market lets buyers negotiate closing costs, repairs and other perks.
I want to be straight about what the data does not show. I found no dataset that measures how often inspection-driven repair requests succeed. Redfin’s concession figures bundle repairs together with closing-cost help and rate buydowns. So the claim that inspection leverage has grown is my inference from the supply and concession data. It is a reasonable one. It is not a measured fact.
How the Inspection Process Works
Here is the process in plain steps, without the jargon.
Before you offer. Line up an inspector before you need one. Good inspectors book up, and scrambling after your offer is accepted puts you on the seller’s clock. Confirm your contract includes an inspection contingency. If your agent suggests waiving it, ask why, and weigh that advice against how much supply your market now has.
On inspection day. A general inspector looks at the roof, the foundation, drainage and grading, siding and windows. Inside, the inspector checks the electrical panel, plumbing, water heater, heating and cooling, and the attic, basement or crawl space. You should attend if you can. The inspector will point to things a written report flattens out, and you’ll see what a defect actually looks like.
What a general inspection does not cover. A standard inspection is a visual review of accessible areas. It typically does not test for mold, asbestos, radon or soil problems. Coverage of septic systems, pools and fireplaces varies. If something looks off, the inspector may recommend a specialist, such as a structural engineer, a sewer scope, a radon test or a pest inspection. Those cost extra, and they can be worth it on older homes.
The report. Read it for the big items first: structure, roof, water intrusion, electrical safety, heating and cooling, and anything the inspector calls a safety hazard. Minor maintenance items fill every report. Don’t let a long list of small things bury the three that matter.
Your four choices. You can accept the home as is. You can ask the seller to make repairs. You can ask for a credit or price reduction. Or you can walk away under the contingency. Which one fits depends on what was found and how much you want the house.
Repairs or Credits? A Practical Take
Ask for credits on most things and repairs on the safety items. That is my view, and here is why.
A credit puts money in your hands and lets you hire your own contractor. A seller-arranged repair can be cheap, cosmetic or poorly done. On the other hand, some lenders and loan types have condition requirements, and a repair may be the only way to satisfy them. Ask your loan officer early whether the home’s condition could affect the loan. That varies by program and is subject to lender guidelines.
Consider a buyer who gets a report with one serious roof issue, one aging water heater and a dozen small items. The stronger play is to ask for a credit or repair on the roof, mention the water heater as a negotiating point, and drop the rest. A buyer who sends a list of forty items gives the seller reasons to dig in. One who sends a short, specific request looks reasonable.
There is a real toss-up here on new construction. Builders are cutting prices and offering incentives, so there is room. But a builder’s incentive may come as a rate buydown or closing-cost help rather than a repair credit. If the builder’s best offer is a buydown, ask how it interacts with your loan before you trade it for a punch list. A punch list is the short list of finishing items the builder agrees to fix.
What Rising Rates Do to Your Leverage
This is the part most buyers miss. Leverage at the inspection table is real, but it is not free.
Freddie Mac’s survey put the 30-year fixed at 7.03% for the week of September 24, 2026. That was up 8 basis points from 6.95% the prior week, and a year earlier it was 6.30%. A basis point is one hundredth of a percentage point.
Freddie Mac’s readings for the preceding weeks were 6.66% on August 27, 6.71% on September 3, 6.76% on September 10 and 6.95% on September 17. That is a 37-basis-point rise in four weeks. AP’s report on the September 24 release counts it as the fifth straight weekly increase, and calls it the first reading above 7% since January 2025. I could confirm four straight increases in the Freddie Mac releases themselves, so say “four-plus” if you want to be safe.
The MBA’s weekly survey tells a similar story. For the week ending September 18, 2026, the MBA reported its average 30-year conforming contract rate rose to 7.12% from 6.97%. Purchase applications were 11% below a year earlier. Refinance applications were 62% below.
Two cautions on those numbers. Freddie Mac’s survey covers conventional conforming purchase loans for borrowers with 20% down and excellent credit. It is not a benchmark for non-QM or self-employed borrowers. And the MBA’s contract rate and Freddie Mac’s survey measure different things, so the gap between them is method, not disagreement. Mortgage News Daily’s daily index sat at 7.43% on September 25, 2026, and runs above both. Every figure here varies by lender and program — guidelines, property type, leverage, and credit profile all apply.
What does that mean at the inspection table? A hypothetical makes it plain. If a rate moves from 6.66% to 7.03%, that is more than a third of a percentage point in a month. A buyer who spent an extra stretch negotiating a small credit may have given back more than the credit was worth. That is not a prediction. It is the arithmetic of a market that has been rising.
Why Are Rates Rising When the Fed Is Not the Mortgage Rate?
Because mortgage rates follow long-term yields, not the Fed’s overnight rate. On September 16, 2026, the Federal Reserve’s FOMC statement announced a 12–0 vote to raise the target range by 25 basis points, to 3-3/4 to 4 percent. CNBC called it the first hike in more than three years.
That hike did not directly set your mortgage rate. Long-term yields moved on their own, and coverage from the National Apartment Association and the MBA points to inflation and deficit concerns. CNBC headlines described the 10-year Treasury at a 19-year high on September 23. You can check the current yield on FRED’s 10-year Treasury series, which updates daily.
Where rates go next is unsettled. CNBC says markets price in another Fed hike this year, and other market reads point to December. I don’t know, and neither does anyone else. That is why I don’t advise buyers to time it.
My Take
Buyers should use this market, not wait for a better one. Supply is the highest in a decade, sellers are conceding, and builders are discounting. Those conditions can change. If rates keep rising, some buyers step back and the leverage fades. If rates ease, buyers return and competition tightens.
The inspection is the one moment in the process where a buyer holds a formal right and a fact-based reason to ask for something. Most buyers waste it. They ask for everything, drag out the reply, and end up with less than a clean, targeted request would have gotten.
My read on the pace question: the buyers I’d worry about are the ones who treat leverage as permission to grind. In a market where the cost of money moved 37 basis points in four weeks, patience isn’t free. Negotiate hard on the things that matter. Then decide.
What I’d Do Now
Set your walk-away line before the report. Decide what kind of finding ends the deal for you. Active water intrusion, a failing roof or unsafe wiring might. A worn deck might not. Deciding in advance keeps you from bargaining emotionally.
Get a written request out promptly and keep it short. Two or three items, each tied to a page in the report. Say whether you want a repair or a credit. Give the seller a clear yes-or-no decision, not an open-ended list.
Order specialist inspections early. If the general inspector flags something, book the specialist right away. Waiting for the general report to sink in delays the whole process.
Talk to your loan officer before you negotiate a credit. Concessions and credits interact with your loan in ways that depend on the program, the property and the amount. Ask what the seller can contribute and how repairs might affect the loan. Our loan options page carries the current guidelines for the programs we arrange, and all of it is subject to lender guidelines.
Understand your lock. A rate lock is an agreement that holds a quoted rate for a set period. If you like the deal and the payment works for you, lock. Floating, meaning waiting to lock in hope of a better rate, is a bet. In a market that has risen for weeks, it is a bet against the trend. Also, quotes gathered on different days are not comparable. A quote from last Tuesday and one from this Friday reflect different markets.
If you’re buying a rental, the inspection feeds your numbers. A roof or heating-system finding changes your reserve needs and your return. Investors using debt-service coverage loans, where the property’s rent drives qualification, should price repairs before they commit. Our DSCR loans guide explains the basics.
If You’re Weighing a Purchase This Fall
If you’re weighing a purchase or a refinance this fall, Lendmire can walk you through how the current programs fit your file. I’d rather you ask the question before the inspection than after it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I still get a home inspection in a buyer’s market?
Yes. A buyer’s market gives you more room to use the findings, but it doesn’t make a house’s problems go away. The inspection is your main protection against expensive surprises. Waiving it saves little and can cost a great deal. If your market is one of the cooler ones, sellers are more likely to entertain a reasonable request.
Can I ask the seller to fix things or give me a credit?
You can ask for either, and the seller can say yes, no or counter. Sellers are conceding more often: Redfin found concessions in 44.7% of August sales nationally. Your local number may be far higher or lower. Keep the request short and tied to specific findings in the report.
Does the inspection affect my mortgage?
It can. The inspection is separate from the lender’s appraisal, but a serious condition problem can affect what a lender is willing to finance, depending on the loan program. Ask your loan officer early. Details vary by program and are subject to lender guidelines.
Will rising rates change what I should ask for?
They change how long you should take. Freddie Mac’s survey rose from 6.66% on August 27 to 7.03% on September 24, 2026. A longer negotiation can cost more than a small credit gains. Be specific, be reasonable and decide promptly.
Is the housing market crashing because sales dipped below 4 million?
No. NAR’s August median price was up 1.6% year over year, and sales are up 1.6% for the year through August. What changed is supply, which is the highest in over ten years. That helps buyers negotiate. It doesn’t mean prices are falling across the board. New-home prices are lower, but Census flags that median change as statistically uncertain.
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References
1. NAR: Existing-home sales report, August 2026
2. U.S. Census Bureau: New residential sales
3. Inman: New-home sales, August 2026
4. Redfin: Home seller concessions, August 2026
5. Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey
6. MBA Weekly Applications Survey, September 23, 2026
This article is part of Lendmire’s Mortgage News series — every loan program’s qualification details, guidelines, and scenarios live on the loan options page.
Related reading: What To Expect After Your Offer Is Accepted · 5 Hidden Costs of Buying a Home · What to Know about an Earnest Money Deposit
Brandon Miller
Founder & CEO, Mortgage Loan Originator, Lendmire LLC
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Legal disclosures. Lendmire (NMLS# 2371349) is a state-licensed mortgage brokerage that arranges financing through wholesale lender relationships. Lendmire is not a direct lender, depository institution, or registered financial advisor. The discussion above is general informational content about real estate financing — it is not financial, legal, or tax advice, and readers should consult licensed professionals for guidance on their individual circumstances. Loan inquiries are subject to lender underwriting; this article does not represent a commitment to lend. Loan terms, rates, and qualification standards vary by borrower, property, and state, and are subject to change at any time. Equal Housing Opportunity. NMLS Consumer Access: nmlsconsumeraccess.org.