US HOME-DEAL CANCELLATIONS HIT PANDEMIC-ERA HIGH

14.5% of US home-purchase agreements that went under contract in September were canceled, the highest share since the pandemic's onset in 2020, according to Redfin. The pain is uneven: Jacksonville led all major metros at 19.9%, followed by Tampa at 18.8%, Las Vegas at 18.6% and San Antonio at 18.5%, all well above the national rate. Pending home sales fell 4% from August, the steepest monthly drop in more than three years, pushing contract activity to its weakest level since spring 2014 outside the pandemic shutdown. Homebuilders tracked by $XHB are feeling a buyer's market that keeps getting stronger.