A few weeks ago, shortly after the Fed announcement, I shared a video and talked about how the Fed funds rate was dropped by half a percent… and on that particular day, mortgage rates actually went up a little bit.
Interestingly, because of many things that have been going on, we’ve seen upward pressure on mortgages for the last few weeks. It’s not a huge move; it’s just a little pressure moving things higher.
Will Rates Drop in the Future?
This brings me to a thought that is always in the back of my mind, and all the experts are saying the same things: we are likely to see rates continuing to drop. But for the foreseeable future (say over the next 6 – 12 months), will we be in a position to see rates lower than where we are right now? Yes, most likely!
But here is what is important: it isn’t going to be a straight line down. There will always be bumps in the road.
When Should You Buy or Refinance?
This bears the question: when should I jump into the market to buy or refinance my home? The real answer is that the ideal time for both of these decisions is to “take the bird in the hand.” If you are thinking about buying and the timing works for you, you are pre-approved, and you have a down payment – then it means that you are ready to go. You can’t time the market, which is why it often makes sense to just get in.
If you are thinking about refinancing, you never know when rates will come down to a magic number. It would be nice to say that you are going to wait until a certain point… but the reality is that you could be wasting money in the interim by not refinancing.
There’s Never a Guarantee
There is never a guarantee that rates are going to drop. So, you just need to make the best decision in the current circumstances. It’s really challenging to time the market since we don’t know what the future has in store. If you do time the market, then it is usually just luck!
Some of this is obvious, but I often hear a lot of indecision about buying or refinancing. What it comes down to is this: make the move when you are ready. And if you need personalized recommendations, then reach out to me any time. I’m happy to look at the numbers with you and provide some insights to help with your decision.