That’s slightly above the 4.05 million pace economists were expecting, according to FactSet, and up 0.7% compared with last year. RELATED STORY | Homebuyers need nearly $110K income to afford a typical homeLast week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported that the benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate rose to 6.69%, its highest level in just over a year. The U.S. housing market has been in a slump since 2022, when mortgage rates began to climb from pandemic-era lows. Sales remain sluggish as mortgage rates have mostly trended higher in the months since the war between the U.S. and Iran started. That’s well short of the roughly 2 million homes for sale that was typical before the COVID-19 pandemic.