Published October 9, 2026 in Market Update

Sales rose in this market even with rates above 7%

By April Aberle, REALTOR® | RE/MAX Crossroads Realty

Real estate, Webster/Clear Lake/Seabrook/Kemah

Rates are high. Nobody is pretending otherwise. CNBC reported the average 30-year fixed rate reached 7.49% in early October 2026. That is a real cost for buyers every month. But here is what the numbers in this market actually show: sales went up anyway.

The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 434 homes sold across these ZIP codes in the three months ending August 31, 2026. That is up 11.6% from the same three months a year before. Buyers are still moving. They are just being careful about which homes they choose.

Pending sales are up 5.5% from a year ago too, per the Real Estate Data Aggregator. That is a forward-looking sign. Homes are going under contract now, which means the next few months should stay active. Fewer homes are sitting on the market than last year, down 5.9% overall. That matters for sellers: less competition.

Each ZIP code tells its own story

This market covers a wide range of neighborhoods and price points. The numbers below show how different each area really is. Speed, price and competition vary a lot depending on where you are.

Where homes are moving fastest

ZIP 77059 stands out for speed. The Real Estate Data Aggregator shows 45.6% of homes there went under contract within two weeks of listing, up 21.5 points from a year ago. That is nearly half of all listings going fast. Median days on market there was just 24 days, and months of supply sits at 2.6 months. Buyers in that area are not waiting around.

ZIP 77062 is close behind. The Real Estate Data Aggregator counted 38.4% of homes going under contract within two weeks there, and the median days on market was just 22 days. That is the quickest of any ZIP in this group. Months of supply there is 2.8, which is lean. Sellers in that area have a real edge right now.

Webster saw the biggest price jump, but read it carefully

ZIP 77598, the Webster area, showed a median sale price of $450,000, up 70.8% from a year ago, according to the Real Estate Data Aggregator. That is a very large jump. It likely reflects a shift in what sold, not just prices rising across the board. Homes sold there were up 84.8% year over year too, which means the mix of sales changed significantly. One ZIP's numbers can move a lot when the types of homes selling change.

Kemah is moving, just more slowly

ZIP 77565, the Kemah area, had a median of 91 days on market. That sounds long, but it is actually 29 days shorter than a year ago, per the Real Estate Data Aggregator. Pending sales there jumped 55.9% year over year. Homes are taking longer to find their buyer, but more of them are finding one. Pricing carefully matters more in this ZIP than in the faster ones.

What about price cuts nationally?

Realtor.com reported that 20.8% of national listings had a price cut in September 2026, the highest share since October 2022. That is a national picture. It does not mean every home here needs a cut. But it is a signal that overpriced homes are sitting everywhere right now. Pricing right from the start is not just smart, it is necessary.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency reported U.S. house prices rose 2.6% from July 2025 to July 2026. Prices are still moving up nationally, just slowly. This market's own numbers, from the Real Estate Data Aggregator, show prices holding or rising in most ZIPs here too, with Seabrook the one exception at down 2.1%.

These numbers cover whole ZIP codes. One street, one subdivision or one price range can read very differently from the ZIP as a whole. If you want to know what is actually happening near your address, reach out and I will take a closer look.