Spring buyers have few homes to choose from Last week we saw mortgage rates tick upwards again to two-month highs, but buyer demand continues to be strong. While rates above 6.5% keep some out of the market, other buyers are competing vigorously for the few homes available. While inventory levels are low across the country as sellers resist listing their […]
Series: The Morty Report
It’s never too early to get started
Getting ahead of the market Today we’re featuring insights and tips to help buyers prepare to enter the market, whether that day is coming soon, or further down the line. Last week the Federal Reserve raised rates by .25% again, the 10th rate hike in a row. For homebuyers, the immediate impact was limited as the […]
Will April price drops bring May buyers
Searching for a 5.5% rate Recently released March housing data shows exactly how much of a roller coaster homebuyers have been on so far this year. While existing home sales increased over 13% in February, the uptick in rates we saw last month resulted in a 2.4% decrease for March. What about prices, you might ask? Well, the median […]
Rates remain stable as stubbornly low inventory drives the spring market
While spring is typically considered a prime time for the housing market, things are shaping up a bit differently this year. To start, inventory remains persistently low, with only 2.6 months of unsold inventory at current projections, according to the National Association of Realtors. While this is higher than during the hot markets of 2021/2022, […]
Buyers are back in the market
Market forces push and pull on mortgage rates The combination of the Fed’s efforts to combat rising inflation and uncertainty in the banking sector are having a push and pull effect on mortgage rates. This week the Fed raised the Federal Funds rate by .25%, making it nine rate increases in a row. While the Fed’s move […]
Strong jobs report, slowing home price growth
Jobs numbers remain strong, home price growth slows Mortgage rates rose again on a weekly basis, but we saw some improvement towards the end of this week. This comes on the heels of a February jobs report that was strong, but cooler than January’s report, which stoked greater concern around inflation. While small, the rate improvement is encouraging for buyers […]
Mortgage rate fluctuation return, but buyers remain active
Rates were volatile this week as the market adjusted to a range of mixed signals. The 1-2 punch of a lower Fed interest rate hike and strong jobs data sent rates back up this week, following a month of steady downward movement. This is driven to some extent by uncertainty around inflation – while the […]
Mortgage applications jump as buyer optimism returns
Buyer energy has returned to the market with benchmarks showing mortgage rates hitting some of their lowest levels since September in the past week. While they have ticked up again over the past few days, reflecting continued rate volatility in the market, some signs show that buyer optimism has renewed.
Positive signs in the housing market as rates dip
January is looking brighter for homebuyers Newly released data shows the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 6.5% annually, reflecting a dip in the inflation we’ve seen over the past year. While inflation remains elevated, this marks two months of positive signs. So what does this mean for homebuyers? On the whole, a few moderately positive indicators […]
Looking ahead to 2023
Looking ahead to 2023. What homebuyers should know as 2022 comes to a close.