Deals for home sales are increasingly falling through

Economic fears are keeping owners in place and buyers on the fence. Brian - stock.adobe.com

Sticker shock and cold feet are leaving nervous American homebuyers adrift.

Indeed, real estate deals across the country are going up in flames.

About 15% of home-purchase agreements were cancelled in September, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing Redfin data. That rate is up from roughly 13.6% last September. Economic and employment fears, paired with elevated costs of homeownership, all add fuel to the fire.

The National Association of Realtors tracked a weak summer of resales this year, and the overall rate of home sales continued to approach a three-decade low.

As deals fall through, stubborn sellers are simply pulling their homes off the market. Delistings nationwide jumped 52% i