Found 138 blog entries tagged as mortgage rates.

Mortgage rates will still remain between 6 and 7 percent, but housing prices are still on a slow decline. Photo by Point3D Commercial Imaging Ltd. on Unsplash

CultureMap Austin shares, "Austin's real estate market has shown progress with improving stability thanks to an increase in listings and slight reductions in prices. Stabilizing prices aside, the overall market's activity brought in more than $17 billion in 2024, according to the latest report from the Austin Board of Realtors (ABoR) and Unlock MLS.

The final report of 2024 wrapped up the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos metro's performance and compared it to 2023's statistics. Most notably, median prices in the Austin area declined 1.7 percent year-over-year to $445,000.

Unlock MLS' housing economist Clare Knapp, Ph.D., predicts 2025 will show similar activity to the previous year.

"2025 market activity will likely look similar to trends…

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Baby boomers continue to dominate the national housing market. GETTY IMAGES

Austin Business Journal writes, "Baby boomers own an outsized share of homes in America — and nearly half of them say they’ll never sell.

About 43% of baby boomers say they will never sell their home, the highest of any generational group, according to a survey of U.S. residents ages 18 to 65 by real estate firm Redfin Corp. (Nasdaq: RDFN). The biggest single reason cited for staying in place is that their home is almost or completely paid off, while others say they like where they live.

About 30% say they are staying in their current home because prices are too high and 18% said they are staying because they don’t want to give up their low mortgage interest rate.

The survey results are playing out in real time, with a recent Redfin analysis…

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Realtor.com writes, "With 2025 underway and with the presidential inauguration on the horizon, speculation is rife about the direction of interest rates.

Here are some of the main outlooks for where they might be headed:

Mortgage rates

Last week, the Freddie Mac rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage rose to 6.91%, its highest level since July.

But Realtor.com® economists predict that mortgage rates will take a tumble in 2025.

According to our 2025 Housing Forecast, we will see an average mortgage rate of 6.3% in 2025.

Home equity loans and HELOCs

Home equity loan and HELOC rates are also expected to fall.

Bankrate predicts that in 2025, the average home equity loan rate will go from 8.41% to 7.9%, and the average HELOC rate will…

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(Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Realtor.com writes, "The U.S. housing market crawled to a standstill last year—and while the latest projections show that 2025 is expected to bring only limited relief to buyers and sellers, there is a glimmer of hope on the horizon.

The year closed out with the strongest seasonal slump since January 2023. Homes lingered on the market for a whopping 70 days, up from 62 in November. It made December 2024 the slowest festive season in five years.

Inventory also plummeted 8.6% from November, marking the most precipitous drop in nearly two years.

Meanwhile, mortgage rates reached a six-month high, hitting 6.91% for the average 30-year fixed home loan for the week ending Jan. 2, according to the latest numbers from Freddie Mac.

On top of…

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Austin Business Journal reports, "A local lender is fundraising for a new startup that aims to help address home affordability by facilitating seller financing.

MORE Seller Direct Financing was founded by Leahy Lending founder Ryan Leahy, who said the startup will show sellers and listing agents how to market lower interest rates in order to attract more homebuyers. In addition to legal, marketing and educational services, the startup will help determine if seller financing — in which a home seller and not a financial institution provides financing to a qualified buyer — is right for the seller.

He said the startup's goals include helping sellers move their homes faster and also earn monthly income to offset current or future mortgage payments.…

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Potential homebuyers in Austin may see improving mortgage rates and home prices in 2025, according to Zillow. Photo by Justin Wallace on Unsplash

CultureMap Austin writes, "It looks like a few more people are about to turn their online home shopping daydreams into reality in 2025. Zillow, the famous real estate listings website, says in a press release that next year will likely bring "a gradual but bumpy decline in rates, impacting sales and price growth."

It attributes the forecast to "erratic and dramatic mortgage rate movements" throughout 2024, which will continue to affect the market. The website's housing market predictions report estimates that 2025 will see about 100,000 more sales than 2024, that home value growth will be "low and slow" at 2.2 percent, and that inventory and new listings will continue recovering from pandemic weakness.

On a local scale, Zillow's latest data…

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Key points:

  • During NAR’s annual real estate forecast summit, a panel of economists shared predictions for their markets in 2025.
  • Compared to much of the country, Austin and Florida have significant inventory, while in Virginia and California, supply remains constrained.
  • Regional issues including post-boom rebalancing, chronic underbuilding and job shifts will continue to impact local markets next year.

RealEstateNews.com writes, "As real estate agents and brokers prepare for 2025, they will need to consider how national forecasts — including predictions of more transactions in 2025 — apply to their local markets.

While the mantra "all real estate is local" remains in play, some trends proved fairly consistent between 2020 and…

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Realtor.com writes, "Builders are working to fix America’s critical housing shortage—and while the number of new homes is expected to top 1.1 million in 2025, expect them to be built slightly smaller.

But, homebuyers can expect them to be more affordable, too, according to the Realtor.com® 2025 Housing Forecast. This is especially good news for first-time homebuyers, who might find new homes easier to access in areas that are growing.

New construction will help ease the housing shortage

In 2025, new-home sales and single-family housing starts are expected to improve compared with other types of homes. Builders plan to construct about 1.1 million homes, which is a 13.8% increase from 2024.

Builders are working to make homes more affordable,…

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More listings are expected next year. GARY HIGGINS / BOSTON BUSINESS JOURNAL

Austin Business journal shares, "More rate volatility, more affordability challenges — but slightly more inventory.

Those are some of the predictions among housing economics for the 2025 for-sale housing market. Beset by continued home-price appreciation, scarce inventory and a mortgage lock-in effect — not to mention sweeping industrywide changes — buying and owning a home continues to be out of reach for many.

Here's what to expect in the U.S. housing market next year.

Inventory and home sales

The biggest potential for relief in 2025 could come from an uptick in inventory.

While many existing homeowners are carrying a mortgage rate of 4% or less, life events and a broader acceptance that rates likely won't drop down to those levels…

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Realtor.com writes, "The real estate market seems to be constantly buzzing about baby boomers, Millennials, and Gen Z, but what about Gen X?

Born between 1965 and 1982, Gen X is the smallest age cohort by population, but they’re no less mighty when it comes to the housing market.

As a sandwich generation wedged between Millennials and baby boomers, Gen Xers are increasingly stepping up to keep their parents and children afloat while redefining how we live, buy, and move in today’s real estate landscape.

How exactly?

Though Gen X accounts for just 19% of the U.S. population, a new National Association of Realtors® report reveals they represent 24% of recent homebuyers—a significant slice of the market. Around 60% of Gen Xers own their…

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