Mortgage rates for 30-year and 15-year fixed-rate home loans edged down by one basis point each, while the 5/1 ARM blipped upward by one, according to a NerdWallet survey of daily mortgage rates published by national lenders Thursday morning.
With mortgage rates holding relatively steady, the attention this morning turned to real estate sales. Pending home sales, a peek at future transactions, fell by 0.8% in July, the fourth decline in five months, according to the National Association of Realtors. The index was 1.3% lower than it was in July 2016. All while the overall economy is growing and home prices are rising.
The problem: Not enough homes are for sale. “The pace of new listings is not catching up with what’s being sold at an astonishingly fast pace,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, in a news release. Strong demand for homes overwhelms the limited supply of homes for sale, he said.
Yun said home prices have risen three times faster than incomes in the past five years, making it difficult for people to afford homes. That especially goes for first-time buyers, he said.
Here’s an illustration of the problem: In the first half of this year, home builders sold 11,000 newly built homes for less than $150,000. Over the same period, they sold 15,000 homes for $750,000 or more, according to the Census Bureau.
MORTGAGE RATES TODAY, THURSDAY, AUG. 31:
(Change from 8/30)
30-year fixed: 3.93% APR (-0.01)
15-year fixed: 3.35% APR (-0.01)
5/1 ARM: 3.86% APR (+0.01)
NerdWallet daily mortgage rates are an average of the published annual percentage rate with the lowest points for each loan term offered by a sampling of major national lenders. APR quotes reflect an interest rate plus points, fees and other expenses, providing the most accurate view of the costs a borrower might pay.
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The article Mortgage Rates Thursday, Aug. 31: Barely Changed, While Pending Home Sales Dip originally appeared on NerdWallet.
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