Good News for Home Buyers and Sellers: Mortgage Rates Continue to Fall

What are Mortgage Rates right now?

Feddie Mac (aka Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.)  reported late last week that lenders were offering borrowers 30-year home loans at an average of 4.12%.  

Here's a quick break down of the most common home loans and their rates as of last week:

• 30-Year Fixed: 4.12%
• 15-Year Fixed: 3.35%
• 5/1  ARM:        3.24%
• the ARM stands for Adustable Rate Mortgage, where the 5/1 means it is fixed for the first 5 years and then adjusts (up or down depending on market mortgage rates) once a year for the remaining life of the loan

How Long will these Mortgage Rates Last?

Mortgage rates adjust every day.  It does not matter if you live in Westlake Village, CA, or some other Ventura County city - mortgage rates are national rates.  Their numbers are directly related to bond market.  And with the recent rush of investors into the US Treasury securities, mortgage interest rates have dropped.  In fact, Friday's closing was the 5th straight week of decreasing mortgage rates for 30-Year Fixed.

How can this be Good News for Home Buyers and Home Sellers?

Let's talk about Home Buyers first:

These mortgage rates truly are at historic lows.  This means lenders are providing ready access to money for home buyers.

How this helps Home Sellers:
If you're selling a home in Thousand Oaks, CA, these historic lows means more and more would-be buyers are likely to enter the real estate buying market.  And simple truths of Supply and Demand means that as the amount of buyers increase (demand), so too does the price of a home for sale.

Is there a catch?

Sorta.  

Interest rates won't stay low forever.  So if you're looking to buy a home, now really might be the best time in terms of accessing money from lenders in the least expensive way.  In other words, the longer you wait, the more expensive it could become.

Conversely, if you're selling (or thinking about selling) your home, as interest rates rise, the amount of buyers will likely shrink - essentially nullifying (or at least weakening) the Supply and Demand benefit I referred to earlier.

What does it all mean?

It's plain and simple - whether you're looking to buy a home, or sell one, you need an experienced Realtor that can help match you with the right counterpart.

Good News - I am an expert Real Estate Broker serving this very community, and I'm here to help you!

Contact me today if you have any questions about buying a home or selling a house in Westlake Village, Thousand Oaks, or Newbury Park, CA.
Margie Noble
Broker/Realtor
Noble Real Estate
BRE License 01859419
www.venturacountyre.com
Phone: 805.844.6257
E-mail: mnoble4re@verizon.net