High prices and still-rising mortgage rates are leading to varied predictions for the 2024 housing market. The median sale price of an existing home reached $406,700 in July, just $7,000 shy of the all-time high. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve has signaled a prolonged period of higher interest rates with no clear end in sight, InvestorPlace reports.
The average 30-year mortgage rate hit 7.36% in late August, and along with those elevated interest rates, National Association of Realtors chief economist Lawrence Yun predicts a 3% to 4% increase in home prices in 2024 while for-sale supply remains constrained. Meanwhile, experts at Zillow anticipate a 3.4% rise in home values, and the National Association of Home Builders foresees the continuation of the housing shortage, which it thinks could put a cap on home price gains.
As we embark on the final quarter of 2023, all eyes are turning to 2024. Understandably, people want to know what to expect in the housing market. Suffice it to say home prices and mortgage rates are very likely to increase.
They’re already elevated, to put it mildly. Believe it or not, the median sale price of an existing home in the U.S. reached $406,700 in July. That figure is only $7,000 less than the all-time high.
Furthermore, the average annual interest rate for a 30-year mortgage reached 7.36% in late August. And with few signs that the “higher for longer” interest rate policy will end soon, housing could become even less affordable.
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