July 26, 2019
Mortgage Rates: Dropping or Holding Steady?
The real estate market over the past year has been on quite a ride. First there were the heavy bidding wars, bolstered by a high amount of investment purchasing, which saw prices rising at an impressive (and, frankly, unsustainable) clip in much of the country. Then there was the inevitable slowdown in price increases, which caused some of the more reactionary elements in market reporting to view the market through the lens of the 2008 housing crisis and to wonder: are we seeing the burst of another bubble? And as mortgage rates appeared set to rise, others wondered whether combined costs of starter homes would price first-time homebuyers out of the market altogether.
But the Fed held back on rate increases earlier in the year, and we have since seen mortgage rates first decline and then, according to Freddie Mac’s June Primary Mortgage Market Survey, come to hold steady into the summer buying season.
Meanwhile, according to the report, homeowner demand has not seen any significant decrease even as the fall in rates paused. Both purchase activity and loan amounts have continued to rise—bolstered by the strong jobs market, the growth of wages being paid, and the strong confidence the average consumer appears to have in the fortitude of the economy.
As of June 20th, the average rate of 30-year fixed rate mortgages stood at 3.84 percent, with an average 0.5 point. (Compare this to last year’s average rate at this time of 4.57 percent.)
The 15-year fixed rate mortgage average on June 20th was 3.25 percent. (Again, compare this rate to last June’s 15-year fixed rate mortgage rate of 4.04 percent.)
This makes now a good—dare we say stellar?—time to buy a home. We may see further decline in rates, but one could hardly expect the banks to go lower.
When you’re shopping around for a home in Rhode Island, Massachussets, or Florida, contact us to see how we can help you ensure a full and unproblematic transfer of title. Topouzis & Associates, P.C., is backed by multiple underwriters, staffed by residential real estate specialists, and ready to help you avoid costly delays and streamline your residential transactions.
