Shop for a home now or hold out for the possibility of lower mortgage rates? That question is confronting many home shoppers this spring homebuying season. Lower rates give house shoppers more financial breathing room, so holding out for a more attractive rate can make a big difference, especially for first-timers who often struggle to find an affordable home. However, there’s a potential downside to waiting.
Return to normalcy? San Antonio home sales increase for a second straight month as prices fall. Acting now would likely saddle a buyer with a rate of about 6.9% on a 30-year mortgage — the highest weekly average rate in about five weeks. But it’s still down from late October, when the rate surged to a 23-year high of nearly 8%, according to mortgage buyer Freddie Mac. Economists generally expect the average rate on a 30-year mortgage to decline later in the year.
Never bought a home? San Antonio is one of the easiest places to do so in 2024, according to Zillow. Lower mortgage rates would boost homebuyers’ purchasing power. Financing a $400,000 home with a 30-year mortgage with a fixed rate at last week’s average of 6.82% works out to about $215 more a month than if the rate was at 6%, for example. Monthly payments on the same loan two years ago, when the mortgage rate averaged 4.72%, would be $534 less.
Here’s how much you need to earn to afford a typical house in the San Antonio area Builders also stepped up construction of smaller, less expensive homes, which helps explain why the median sale price of a new U.S. home fell nearly 8% in February from a year earlier to $400,500. That’s the lowest level since June 2021.
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