APRIL 20, 2023

After declining for 5 consecutive weeks, mortgage rates rose this week as there is some calming in the banking sector. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage rose to 6.39% from 6.27% the previous week.

However, mortgage rates are expected to continue to fluctuate in the coming months, affecting both housing affordability and sales activity. And although the seasonally adjusted annual figure of home sales reported in the news dropped by 2% in March, about 34% more homes were sold in March compared to February based on the raw count of home sales.

This increase is actually larger than the pre-pandemic historical average growth of 33% that typically occurs between March and February. While we have a long way to go to get back to pre-pandemic levels of home sales, the housing market is making progress.

APRIL 27, 2023

Mortgage rates rose modestly but remain below 6.5%. According to Freddie Mac, the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage ticked up to 6.43% from 6.39% the previous week. Although mortgage rates will continue to fluctuate in the following months, the overall trend will continue downward. NAR projects mortgage rates will fall to 5.8% by the end of the year.

In April, rates averaged 6.3%. At this rate, Americans need to put 20% down for a median-priced home if they don’t want their monthly mortgage payment to take up more than 25% of their income. However, data shows that nearly half of renters – 21 million renter households – spend more than 30% of their income on rent.

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Some of this content was generated by the National Association of Realtors.