Mortgage Rates lowest now since December 2012!

While a possible pandemic is causing alarm (and fear mongering) throughout the U.S. - not all news is bad news!

As economic uncertainty about the coronavirus drives down interest rates, house hunters are applying for mortgages at a level not seen in more than a decade. U.S. mortgage rates fell to the lowest levels in eight years last week, according to official data published Wednesday, while refinancing spiked following the Federal Reserve's emergency interest rate cut.

The Fed slashed its benchmark lending rate by 50 basis points, to a range of 1% to 1.25%, on March 3, citing "evolving risks to economic activity" from the coronavirus.

For the week ending March 6, mortgage loan applications rose 55.4% as compared to a week earlier, reaching their highest number since April 2009, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's weekly survey.

Homeowners are flocking to take advantage of lower interest rates. Refinancing applications jumped 79% week over week, the biggest weekly jump since November, 2008. The volume of refinance applications was also the highest in nearly 11 years.

BUT BE CAREFUL

As the mortgage business continues to try to deal with the repercussions of interest rates hitting an all-time low last week, it appears that some lenders are inflating their advertised mortgage rates to try to stem the tidal wave of mortgage applications they’re receiving. 

A review of the top mortgage rate comparison sites (LendingTree, Bankrate, Zillow, Credit Karma and several others) shows lenders advertising rates well above the all-time low that rates fell to just last week. 

Some lenders may be keeping their mortgage rates above where they could be in an effort to control the demand for mortgages.

Put simply, many lenders are so busy right now trying to process the loan applications they’ve already received that they’re pushing their interest rates well above the prevailing market rate so they can actually deliver on the loans they already have in their pipeline. 

What does this mean?

The timing, with the annual Spring housing market literally opening its doors right now, could not be better to list your home for sale. List with Real Estate expert Greg Rapp, and get the ball rolling in the right direction. Call 704.213.6846.

Sources:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2020/03/11/

https://www.thestreet.com/investing/

https://www.housingwire.com/articles

Greg Rapp Realtor®
Wallace Realty
704.213.6846
GregRappRealtor@gmail.com
Facebook.com/GregRappRealtor/

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