Area Real Estate Market Watchers Find Another Surprise
When the Wall Street Journal or
Forbes run mortgage rate stories as their lead items, those of us who
keep an eye on our local real estate market pay close
attention. I frequently share what they say here. But when even the
non-financial outlets like USA TODAY and the cable TV news channels give
top billing to real estate market news, it’s a real attention-grabber.
That’s what happened last week. USA TODAY’s
online headline focused on the 15-year fixed mortgage rate, “at a record low
2.61%.” The cable news channels talked about record low rates, too (although if
you hit the ‘pause’ button long enough to read the TV graphics, you saw that
the national average for 30-year loans was still a shade away from the actual
record low).
Never mind that; it’s still surprising that
mortgage rates continue to linger at such tempting lows.
The reason is hardly a secret: the
Federal Reserve is holding rates down to energize the real estate market — a
key element of the overall economy. Yet, with existing home sales notching up
in the first quarter at the briskest pace in four years, you would have thought
that mortgage rates would have been loosened up at least somewhat. And with new
home sales doing their best since 2008…
Of course, it doesn’t matter what
anyone expects: the results of dipping mortgage rates is just plain good news
for everyone in the Salt Lake real estate market: buyers and sellers alike. Those low
mortgage rates act to offset the rising U.S. house price index. The result for
buyers is a more valuable home without the expected increase in the monthly
payment. What more of an inducement to enter the real estate market could there
be?
In short, if you’re
considering whether it’s time to buy (or to sell your current home and trade up
without busting the household budget), last week’s national and
local market signs are even clearer than they have been recently.
There are
definitely opportunities out there! Why not give me a call for an
up-to-the-moment real estate market evaluation in Utah's Salt Lake City and Beyond?
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