Mortgage Rates

You may be hearing a lot of talk about the Federal Reserve (the Fed) and how their actions will impact the housing market right now. Here’s why. The Fed meets again this week to decide the next step with the Federal Funds Rate. That's how much it costs banks to borrow from each other. Now, that’s not the same thing as setting mortgage rates, but mortgage rates can be influenced...

Even if you’re not looking to move right away, you may have questions about how the election will impact the housing market. When we look at historical trends, combined with what’s happening right now, we can find your answers. Based on historical data, mortgage rates decrease in the months before and home prices and sales increase the year after the election. The facts show Presidential elections...

Homeowners typically slow down their moving plans as the summer months wrap up, and as a result, fewer homes are listed for sale in the fall. It’s a predictable, seasonal trend in real estate. But this year, mortgage rates came down at the same time the number of homes on the market usually starts to decline. So, what happened? More homeowners decided to sell, so more homes came to the...

Did you know? Homeowners are often able to put more money down when they buy their next home. That’s because, once they sell, they can use the equity they have in their current house toward their next down payment. And it’s why as home equity reaches a new height, the median down payment has too. According to the latest data from Redfin, the typical down payment for U.S. homebuyers is...

If you’ve been wanting to sell your house and move up to a bigger or nicer home, you’re not alone. A recent Inman survey reveals the top motivator for today’s homebuyers is the desire for more space or an upgraded home (see graph below): But there’s also a good chance you, like many other people, have been holding off on that goal because of recent market challenges. It makes...

Affordability is based on three key factors: mortgage rates, home prices, and wages. And today, it’s improving quickly as rates come down, prices level off, and wages climb. If you put your search on pause because it was too expensive to buy, let’s talk about why now may be the perfect time to jump back...