10 U.S. metro areas where builders are slashing prices on new homes

By Aarthi Swaminathan

Nearly 4 in 10 builders are cutting home prices

With home buyers on the sidelines as mortgage rates march upward, builders are struggling to sell their inventory.

Existing-home prices just hit a new record high - but there are plenty of newly built homes selling at a discount, as desperate builders cut prices.

Selling a house in the current market is tough, as high mortgage rates make buyers hesitant to take the plunge on a home purchase. The 30-year mortgage rate averaged 6.55% as of Thursday, according to data from Freddie Mac (FMCC). That's in stark contrast to the sub-6% rates that gave buyers a flash of hope in February.

With buyers back on the sidelines, home builders are struggling to sell newly built houses. Unlike homeowners, who can take their house off the market and wait for a more opportune time to sell, builders need to move inventory to keep their businesses profitable. The spring home-buying season was a disappointment, and the bleak outlook for summer sales kept home-builder confidence low in June.

Below are the 10 U.S. metro areas where the largest share of builders have cut prices on new homes, according to an analysis from Realtor.com. The data set, current as of June 2026, includes the 100 largest metro areas in the U.S. (Realtor.com is operated by News Corp subsidiary Move Inc.; MarketWatch publisher Dow Jones is also a subsidiary of News Corp.)

-- Fresno, Calif.

-- Charleston-North Charleston, S.C.

-- San Antonio-New Braunfels, Texas

-- Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, Nev.

-- Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, Texas

-- Greensboro-High Point, N.C.

-- Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, Ariz.

-- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas

-- Winston-Salem, N.C.

-- Denver-Aurora-Centennial, Colo.

"The housing market is going nowhere fast," Oliver Allen, a senior U.S. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, wrote in a note.

"Demand for new homes already was weak before the conflict in the Middle East, reflecting depressed demand in general and a steady recovery in the number of existing homes for sale eating into home builders' market share," Allen added. "But the climb in mortgage rates in recent months has added to home builders' woes."

In July, 37% of builders cut prices to boost home sales, according to a survey by the National Association of Home Builders. Nearly six in 10 builders also used sales incentives to try to entice buyers, such as offering money towards buyers' closing costs, or upgrades such as a free washer and dryer.

'The housing market is going nowhere fast.'Oliver Allen, Pantheon Macroeconomics

A flavor of how big the price cuts are

National home builder D.R. Horton (DHI) has dropped asking prices of homes built in one community in Summerville, S.C., to make the monthly payments more affordable.

The price cuts vary based on several factors, including the type of builder and geography. In one new community in Fresno, Calif., the builder is offering up to $50,000 off the asking price on some units, as seen below.

National home builder Lennar (LEN) has cut prices of homes in certain Fresno communities by as much as $22,000 to attract offers.

The national median sales price of a newly built home in May - the latest month for which data is available - was $424,900. The figure was 2% higher than the same month a year ago.

In June, the median sale price for previously owned homes hit $440,600.

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-Aarthi Swaminathan

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07-17-26 1023ET

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