Tag Archives: Interest rates

According to a recent Realtor.com survey, more than half of all first-time homebuyers indicated that now is a good time to buy, as moderating price growth and mortgage rates are expected to help improve affordability throughout 2024.

A new study has found that 96% of millennials cite high interest rates as impacting their homebuying plans, and 70% cite inflation as a hindrance.

Inventory levels are improving, and home sellers were more active this December, according to Realtor.com's Monthly Housing Market Trends Report. With the number of homes for sale growing year-over-year, experts anticipate that more new listings will enter the market in 2024.

"Mortgage rate optimism increased dramatically this month, with a survey-high share of consumers anticipating mortgage rate declines over the next year," said Mark Palim, VP and Deputy Chief Economist at Fannie Mae.

“This holiday season, homeowners are the ‘grinches,’ hoarding housing supply from willing buyers and keeping upward pressure on prices," said Mark Fleming, Chief Economist at First American. But the question remains: Will the New Year offer discouraged homebuyers more hope?

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said, "The latest weakness in existing home sales still reflects the buyer bidding process in most of October, when mortgage rates were at a two-decade high before the actual closings in November.”

Mortgage applications climbed in November, but will home sales accelerate throughout the end of the year? Mark Fleming, Chief Economist at First American, details the state of existing-home sales and more market predictions.

In November, new listings jumped to their highest level since October 2022, while home prices also posted its biggest increase since the same time last year. Pending home sales also continued to rise, but many home purchases fell through at a record rate as some homebuyers got cold feet, according to a new Redfin report.

For the third meeting in a row, the Federal Open Market Committee chose to hold rates steady based on current market conditions and future predictions. Click through to find out the current interest rate and read a brief history of rate hikes since the pandemic began, as well as commentary from relevant economists and sources.

While the average homebuyer can now afford to spend even less on a home, a new Point2 study revealed that the median home price in the U.S. is now 50% higher than the average affordable home price.