US home sellers cut prices and pay buyers' costs in a stalled market

Average 30-year mortgage rate

7.4 % at its peak this month

The average 30-year mortgage rate in the United States surged as high as 7.4 per cent this month, its highest level in nearly three years.

About 21 per cent of listings in September had their price cut, a four-year high, and the median listing price fell 1.2 per cent to US$419,250 from a year earlier.

"The dynamic has shifted back toward more of what we call buyers' markets rather than sellers' markets."

— Mark Fleming, chief economist, First American Financial