Spring! The sun shines a little brighter, the birds sing a little louder, the weather gets a little warmer, and the realtors get a lot more active because people are on the move! We’ve got ourselves an interesting situation this spring when it comes to home buying, and it could impact a lot of people, so let’s see what’s happening!
Here are Five Fast Facts on mortgage rates:
- 📈 Up Up Up - The interest rate on new 30-year mortgages rose to 6.77% from last week’s 6.64%, the highest number in a couple of months.
- 🤔 The Driver - The recent positive reports on inflation getting under control combined with a reasonably strong job market have prompted investors to think the Fed may not start bringing interest rates down as soon as initially thought.
- 🔍 Looking Back - The peak rate on 30-year mortgages was in October of last year at a cringe-inducing 7.79% (the highest since 2000). A year ago, the average rate was 6.32%. Two years ago, it was 3.92%! See what a little rampant inflation does for ya’?
- ⚓ What The Result? - The end result is that people are staying put because they don’t want to take on higher monthly payments and interest rates on their single biggest purchase.
- ✋ Rock, Hard Place - This scenario could make things even more ugly over the next few weeks. If buyers start their usual spring shopping but interest rates don’t come down – thus prompting people to continue staying put – then it could drive prices even higher.
🔥Bottom line: The experts are expecting demand to remain relatively weak so hopefully we won’t get stuck between that rock and hard place, but who knows? If you’re a home buyer or seller, though, the situation certainly bears some attention.
Are you looking to move this spring?
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