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Is Reprieve in Mortgage Rates Enough to Move Buyers? In just two weeks, mortgage rates have fallen nearly a quarter of a percentage point. Mortgage rates are starting to cool off after nearly hitting 7% in recent weeks. Borrowing costs have eased somewhat and housing affordability is showing signs of improvement—just in time for the spring selling season. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.74% this week, Freddie Mac reports. Over the last two weeks, rates have fallen by nearly a quarter of a percentage point. Potential home buyers are responding: Mortgage applications for a home purchase—a gauge of future homebuying activity—rose by 5% in the latest week and have been increasing over the last two weeks as rates have moved lower, the Mortgage Bankers Association reports. For home buyers looking to purchase a $400,000 home with a 20% down payment, the estimated monthly mortgage payment at this week’s rate equates to about $2,073, says Jessica Lautz, deputy chief economist at the National Association of REALTORS®. Compared to October, when rates surged to a 7.79% average, home buyers can now save about $228 per month, she says. Mortgage rates in the mid-6% range are encouraging more home buyers to return to the market. “Homebuying activity is showing an increase in buyer demand from last year, when buyers were apprehensive of rising rates,” Lautz says. But “more housing inventory is needed to meet the demand.” House hunters are still facing multiple-offer situations as they scramble to compete for low inventory. Home buyers will continue to watch rates carefully, as they also continue to face record-high home prices. While economists have largely predicted rates to stay in the 6.5% or 6.3% range for most of 2024, week-to-week fluctuations remain a wild card for the housing market. Plus, “despite the recent dip, mortgage rates remain high as the market contends with the pressure of sticky inflation,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “In this environment, there is a good possibility that rates will stay higher for a longer period of time.” Freddie Mac reports the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending March 14: 30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 6.74%, dropping from last week’s 6.88% average. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 6.6%. 15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 6.16%, falling from a 6.22% average last week. A year ago, 15-year rates averaged 5.9%.

Is Reprieve in Mortgage Rates Enough to Move Buyers? In just two weeks, mortgage rates have fallen nearly a quarter of a percentage point. Mortgage rates are starting to cool off after nearly hitting 7% in recent weeks. Borrowing costs have eased somewhat and housing affordability is showing signs of improvement—just in time for the spring selling season. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.74% this week, Freddie Mac reports. Over the last two weeks, rates have fallen by nearly a quarter of a percentage point. Potential home buyers are responding: Mortgage applications for a home purchase—a gauge of future homebuying activity—rose by 5% in the latest week and have been increasing over the last two weeks as rates have moved lower, the Mortgage Bankers Association reports. For home buyers looking to purchase a $400,000 home with a 20% down payment, the estimated monthly mortgage payment at this week’s rate equates to about $2,073, says Jessica Lautz, deputy chief economist at the National Association of REALTORS®. Compared to October, when rates surged to a 7.79% average, home buyers can now save about $228 per month, she says. Mortgage rates in the mid-6% range are encouraging more home buyers to return to the market. “Homebuying activity is showing an increase in buyer demand from last year, when buyers were apprehensive of rising rates,” Lautz says. But “more housing inventory is needed to meet the demand.” House hunters are still facing multiple-offer situations as they scramble to compete for low inventory. Home buyers will continue to watch rates carefully, as they also continue to face record-high home prices. While economists have largely predicted rates to stay in the 6.5% or 6.3% range for most of 2024, week-to-week fluctuations remain a wild card for the housing market. Plus, “despite the recent dip, mortgage rates remain high as the market contends with the pressure of sticky inflation,” says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. “In this environment, there is a good possibility that rates will stay higher for a longer period of time.” Freddie Mac reports the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending March 14: 30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 6.74%, dropping from last week’s 6.88% average. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 6.6%. 15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 6.16%, falling from a 6.22% average last week. A year ago, 15-year rates averaged 5.9%.

Falling Mortgage Rates Are Bringing Buyers Back If you’ve been reluctant to put your house on the market due to concerns about a lack of buyers, this could be your signal to reach out to an agent. After months of high interest rates keeping buyers on the sidelines, the market is starting to shift. Rates are already declining due to various economic factors. Yesterday, the Federal Reserve reduced the Federal Funds Rate for the first time since it began raising it in March 2022. While the Fed doesn’t directly control mortgage rates, this move sets the stage for mortgage rates to drop even further—especially with more cuts anticipated next year. As mortgage rates decrease, more buyers are returning to the market. Lisa Sturtevant, Chief Economist at Bright MLS, explains: “A drop in the cost of borrowing will help fuel more homebuyer demand . . . Falling rates will also bring more sellers into the market.” The best part? You can capitalize on the renewed interest from buyers. As Rates Fall, Buyer Activity Goes Up The graph below highlights the connection between declining mortgage rates and increasing buyer activity. The orange line represents the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate, while the blue line indicates the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) Mortgage Application Index, which measures the volume of mortgage applications. As shown in the graph below, as mortgage rates (orange) decrease, the Mortgage Application Index (blue) increases, indicating that more people are re-entering the market. What This Means for You The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports that home sales rose in July, marking a positive shift after four consecutive months of declines. If you’re a homeowner considering selling, this increase in buyer activity could work to your advantage. With more buyers in the market, increased competition can result in higher offers and a quicker sale for your home. According to Edward Seiler, AVP of Housing Economics at the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), this trend is likely to persist: “MBA is expecting that slower home-price appreciation, coupled with lower rates, will ease affordability constraints and lead to increased activity in the housing market.” Overall, the market is becoming more accessible to a broader range of buyers, potentially leading to even more people interested in purchasing a home like yours. With more buyers entering the market, this is the perfect time to start preparing your house for sale. Bottom Line The recent drop in mortgage rates is already attracting more buyers to the market, and experts predict this trend will continue. Let’s collaborate to leverage this growing buyer demand and prepare your house for sale. Visit website:https://lnkd.in/erHPes8i #forsellers #mortgagerates #sellingtips

Mortgage Rates Ease ! Average mortgage rates have eased to below 7% for just the second time in eight weeks, according to Freddie Mac’s latest data. The 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.99% in the week ended June 6, down from 7.03% the previous week but up from the comparable week this time last year when it stood at 6.71%, the mortgage giant said Thursday. The 15-year, fixed-rate mortgage also decreased, averaging 6.29%. That’s lower than last week when it averaged 6.36% but higher than a year earlier when it was 6.07%. As of Wednesday afternoon, the current 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage stood at 7.03%, and the 15-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 6.55%, according to Mortgage News Daily. Lower mortgage rates are a product of "incoming data showing slower growth," Freddie Mac's Chief Economist Sam Khater said in a statement. Industry professionals largely expected the downshift in rates this week, citing improvement in the bond market, indications that the economy is slowing. An updated picture of the labor market is set to be delivered Friday with May’s jobs report. “Bonds continue to rally as a result of a string of data pointing to a weakening economy. Subdued jobs numbers (new jobs and job openings), weaker manufacturing data and last week’s PCE data have sent yields tumbling,” Melissa Cohn, regional vice president at William Raveis Mortgage, said in a survey from personal finance website Bankrate. “Mortgage rates have followed suit. The real estate market is cheering!” Looking Ahead While this week brought positive news for mortgage rates, the bigger picture is more of a mixed bag as rates have hovered at the 7% threshold since mid-April. For one, expectations for the rest of the year are shifting. A panel of analysts revised their mortgage rate expectations for the year higher after the second quarter, according to a Fannie Mae report published Thursday. Previously, the panel had estimated mortgage rates would settle around 5.9% by the end of 2024. Now, they think that figure will be closer to 6.6%. At the same time, the continued upward pressure on mortgage rates is driving prospective homebuyers out of the market — a trend that could be beneficial for landlords and developers who could see increased demand for rental properties. Mortgages secured by residential properties were down 6.8% in the first quarter compared to the previous quarter, hitting their lowest level since 2000 and marking the 11th quarter of declines in the past 12 quarters, according to real estate data firm ATTOM’s U.S. Residential Property Mortgage Origination Report released Thursday. Total residential lending was down 4.8% on a yearly basis and 69.3% compared to its high point in 2021, the report said. The declines came from “all major categories of residential lending,” including purchase-loan activity, refinance deals and home-equity credit lines.

Second quarter saw first mortgage rebound in a year, count picks up over 20% quarterly This year’s spring homebuying season may not have been as strong as it has been traditionally, but it still provided a lift to the housing industry, according to Attom. The company’s recently released second-quarter 2024 U.S. Residential Property Mortgage Origination Report revealed that there were 1.62 million residential mortgages issued in the second quarter. While that’s still down 1.6% from the second quarter of 2023 (and 61.2% lower than the recent high of 4.17 million loans reached in the first quarter of 2021), that’s still a 23.2% pickup over the preceding three-month period. The increase marked the first quarterly upswing in a year, pushing the count of residential mortgages at least close to the level of activity from the same point last year. By loan count, purchase activity grew to roughly 783,000 loans, up 32.7% quarter over quarter. Refi deals were up 10.3%, rising to a count of about 546,000. Similar growth was observed on a metro level, with loan counts increasing in 98% of the country’s metropolitan areas with at least 200,000 people. Among metros with at least 1 million people, Honolulu saw the biggest quarterly uptick in mortgages; residential loan count was up by 100.2% in Hawaii’s capital and largest city during the second quarter. Other major metros that had the largest quarterly jumps in total loans included San Jose (up 46%), Minneapolis (44.3%), Indianapolis (42.3%) and Boston (35.4%). Rising prices helped push the total dollar volume of residential loans nationwide up to $533 billion in this year’s Q2, up 27.6% quarterly and 1.1% annually. Any improvement in a down market is helpful, said Rob Barber, Attom’s CEO, though he warned against making any forward-looking projections from the transitory rebound. Reactions to the expected downward shift in rates during the fall will be more telling, Barber noted. “The mortgage industry got one of its biggest boosts in years during the second quarter, supported by a combination of the usual springtime homebuyer demand coupled with more attractive mortgage rates,” Barber said. “However, a cautionary note is warranted, as we shouldn’t read too much into one great quarter. “A similar trend occurred last spring, with lending dropping off significantly later in the year. But with interest rates settling down and projections for more cuts from the Federal Reserve over the coming months, it wouldn’t be surprising if business increased even more for lenders over the rest of 2024, or at least didn’t drop significantly.” #homebuyer #mortgage #mortgages #broker #mortgagebroker #mortgagebrokers

Mortgage Rates Likely to Remain Stable After Fed Move The Federal Reserve signaled possible rate cuts to come, which could influence lower mortgage rates and spur housing activity. Mortgage rates, which averaged 6.63% this week, according to Freddie Mac, are likely to feel downward pressure after the Federal Reserve on Wednesday held its key short-term interest rate steady and indicated possible rate cuts to come, housing analysts say. Economists expect a more robust real estate market this year if rate predictions hold true. Although the Fed’s rate does not directly impact mortgage rates, it often influences them Jessica Lautz, deputy chief economist at the National Association of REALTORS®, anticipates mortgage rates to remain in the 6% range for most of the year. “While this is certainly higher than the historic lows seen in 2020 and 2021, this is lower than the historical norm of 7.74%,” Lautz says. With less volatility in mortgage rates, consumers may feel more confident to resume house hunting. Last fall, mortgage rates surged to nearly 8%, shaking buyer confidence and causing home sales to dip. This week’s 6.63% average translates to about $251 less for a typical monthly mortgage payment compared to fall when rates hit a peak, Lautz says. Mortgage rates have held relatively stable for nearly two months, which is bringing more buyers back into the housing market, says Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist. Further, “the economy continues to outperform due to solid job and income growth, while household formation is increasing at rates above pre-pandemic levels,” he says. “These favorable factors should provide fundamental support to the market in the months ahead.” Lower mortgage rates are helping to improve housing affordability, adds NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. Pending home sales rose 8.3% in December and are now higher than a year ago, NAR’s latest housing report shows. Homeowners also may find more incentive to sell. “Many delayed home sellers may be willing to give up 3% to 4% rates as life circumstances have changed, thereby boosting inventory,” Yun says. “Home sales will no doubt rise this year.” NAR is forecasting a 13% increase in existing-home sales compared to 2023. That rising trend is expected to continue into 2025, with another 15.8% uptick, NAR notes. Freddie Mac reports the following national averages with mortgage rates for the week ending Feb. 1: 30-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 6.63%, dropping from last week’s 6.69% average. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 6.09%. 15-year fixed-rate mortgages: averaged 5.94%, falling from last week’s 5.96% average. A year ago, 15-year rates averaged 5.14%.