Yesterday’s mortgage rates represent the lowest they have been since before the 2016 primary election. Specifically, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (“FRM”) dropped .06% from 3.51% to 3.45%. The last time we saw numbers this low was October 2016, when it sat at 3.42%. As is typically the case, the 15-year FRM dropped .03% from 3.0% to 2.97%. This is the first time since 2016 that the 15-year FRM is under 3%.
This decrease represents the third consecutive week where mortgage rates have dropped, and buyers have taken note. There has been a significant surge in demand for houses over these last few weeks, making it a Seller’s dream come true; this trend is likely to continue for the next few months. Here at the Chernov Team, our listings are receiving record-breaking numbers of offers.
We don’t know how much stock to put in the doomsday theorists who speculate that some type of crash is just around the corner, but, we do note that “some kind of crash” has been “just around the corner” since at least 2015.
Notably, during Q4 of 2019, most major metropolitan areas saw an increase in their affordability index. This was driven, in large part, by low mortgage rates. As 2020 is likely to bring a little more stability to interest rates, and affordability will only increase if more homes are built, California has legislation that will effectively guarantee more houses will be built. Thus, in California at least, affordability will become less of an issue, making it easier for everyone to buy, or sell, a home.
At the Chernov Team, we understand that knowledge is power, and knowledge of how mortgage rates are behaving is powerful knowledge indeed. At the Chernov Team, we know that whoever comes to the table most prepared leaves with the most, and the Chernov Team always leaves the table with the most.