Here's a shout out to all those buyers out there who are waiting to be sure that real estate prices have hit bottom: You may succeed in buying when prices have passed the bottom, but you may lose on rates. Although the Fed has signaled that it won't be raising its rates any time soon, the mortgage rates are more creatures of supply and demand, as well as bank appetites for new loans. Rates also tend to follow a seasonal pattern--lowest at election time (what a surprise!), and higher in the busiest spring buying season).
I get rates sent to me on a weekly basis, and it's clear that they are headed up. If you have waited this long to buy, don't make the mistake of continuing to wait. They may go back down in the fall, but, by then, prices will have risen. Buyers have increasingly begun to think of the cost of housing as the cost of the monthly payment, since that matters far more to them than the actual price of the home at any given time. Not only are mortgage rates heading higher, but insurance and taxes have risen in most places as well. Buy now, or regret it later!
