COVERAGE INFORMATION:
California Department of Real Estate (DRE) NEWS CLIPS service coverage:
Monday through Friday (except state holidays) each week includes electronic format articles retrieved from newspapers or news services that report real estate related news in California and some national services. Coverage is for California newspapers that are available electronically via the Internet - and any significant related breaking news.
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Copyright © , California Department of Real Estate
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Wednesday, August 26, 2026
Top Stories
Mortgage rates jump as Treasury buyback plan fails to cut costs
NEIL PIERSON, FLAVIA FURLAN NUNES, HousingWire (Subscription)
Last week, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced its intention to buy back more long-term Treasury debt in an attempt to quiet the bond market and push yields lower. The buyback plan is set to begin Sept. 9. But while that move was largely viewed as positive for mortgage rates, as it theoretically should have pushed them lower, it hasn’t done so in practice.
Mortgage Demand Slips in August as Higher Rates Cool U.S. Home Purchases
World Property Journal
Mortgage application activity edged lower last week as borrowing costs rose to their highest level in three weeks, adding fresh pressure to a housing market already struggling with subdued purchase demand and limited refinancing incentives.
National News
Home prices gain ground, but real value erosion drags on
LIEZEL ONCE, Mortgage Professional America
American home prices accelerated through the second quarter of 2026, yet the more telling story sits beneath the headline figures. With inflation still outrunning nominal gains, values are climbing on paper and shrinking in real terms, a tension that continues to define broker conversations heading into the second half of the year.
Investors Are Snapping Up Shabby Hotels and Whipping Them Into Shape
WILL PARKER, Wall Street Journal (Subscription)
Dissatisfied guests at a Hilton Garden Inn in downtown Austin, Texas, have reviewed the hotel as “very run down” and “janky,” in reference to faulty elevators. The hotel is one of many around the U.S. that have languished for years in need of a refresh but whose operators have struggled to find the cash to pull off the renovations.
Only 1 in 3 sellers are negotiating agent commissions
LILLIAN DICKERSON, Real Estate News
In the wake of the landmark commissions lawsuits and rule changes that have reshaped the real estate industry over the past few years, there has been much discussion about the negotiation of agent commissions. Even so, it appears homesellers are still largely unaware that they can ask for a lower commission — though those who do have a high likelihood of success.
California News
Where can I find California homes for $250K? Prices are dropping, experts say
ANGELA RODRIGUEZ, Sacramento Bee (Subscription)
“California’s housing market pulled back last month as mortgage rates remained elevated and briefly reached a 12-month high in recent weeks,” California Association of Realtors President Tamara Suminski said in the Aug. 17 housing report. However, Suminski said, improving housing inventory and a recent decline in mortgage rates could give buyers more options as the market moves into the slower fall season.
The unexpected California city that led a century of home price growth
TESSA MCLEAN, SFGate
It’s no secret that California’s coastal cities are some of the priciest in the country, whether you’re a renter or a homebuyer, but a new analysis from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia is shedding light on how the state’s coastal cities created their housing crisis over the past 134 years, using more than a century’s worth of data to demonstrate the dramatic rise in prices.
Industry News
Inside the deal mechanics of Real’s $880M REMAX merger: FAQ
AJ LATRACE, Inman (Subscription)
The headline number was $880 million. But public SEC filings tied to the closing of The Real Brokerage’s acquisition of REMAX Holdings offer a closer look at how the mega-merger was actually put together — from hundreds of millions of dollars in refinanced debt to the cash and stock handed to REMAX shareholders and a $450 million share buyback authorization announced immediately after closing.
Real Estate Technology
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Property News
For These Architects, Something Old Is New Again
LEONORA EPSTEIN, New York Times (Subscription)
In Centreville, Del., there’s a farmhouse that looks as though it’s been standing since the Civil War. There’s white clapboard siding, double-hung windows, paneled shutters and a columned portico. The interior is defined by the traditional millwork details on the staircase, window casings and wainscoting. But this isn’t an authentic Federal home. In fact, it’s a completely new build, finished just two years ago.
In Case You Missed It
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Resources, Webinars, and Other Items of Interest
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