Kiavi Investor Pulse: September 2026 Market and Financing Update

The September 2026 real estate market delivered the Federal Reserve’s first rate hike since 2023 , a 30-year mortgage rate above 7% , and a new chapter for Kiavi as a Figure company. Higher rates may slow retail buyers, but that same pullback could hand real estate investors more inventory than at any point in the past decade, more room to negotiate, and fewer competing investor buyers. Completed foreclosures rose 42% year-over-year in August and Midwest rents led the nation , two signals that may favor disciplined acquisition and rental hold strategies.