As Mortgage Rates Surge to 7%, Buyers Face Shrinking Window of Opportunity

The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage reached 7.08% on Tuesday, according to Mortgage News Daily, sending average monthly payments for a home listed at the national median asking price of $435,050 roughly $1,000 higher than they were one year ago. Despite the Federal Reserve’s increasingly aggressive rate hikes meant to cool runaway inflation in the U.S. economy, home prices remain high in most regional markets due to a nationwide housing deficit exacerbated by a lack of existing for-sale inventory, The New York Times reports.

Americans who purchased homes in the last two years locked in ultra-low mortgages, and many aren’t willing to sell their homes in the midst of a housing reset marked by elevated borrowing costs.

But prices, while moderating, remain high in many markets because inventory is still far below prepandemic levels, said Lawrence Yun, the group’s chief economist. And many who bought homes in the last two years, having locked in some of the best mortgage rates on record, are unlikely to trade up to a new property now, he said, which will limit the supply of homes coming to market.

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