Halloween Scream? Not This Year
After almost touching 5%(!) barely a month ago, interest rates on a 30-year mortgage for well-qualified borrowers have dropped almost a full point, to just above 4%.
Jumbo loan rates are even lower.
Chalk that up to 3 reasons: 1) the debt ceiling has been raised, however temporarily; 2) the latest round of economic numbers have been weak (blame the government shutdown); and 3) Janet Yellen, the dovish incoming Fed Chairman, takes over soon.
Call it a reprieve for home Buyers, afraid they were going to miss out on dirt-cheap rates, and a relief to would-be home Sellers, who can expect the temperature of the Fall housing market (if not the weather) to tick up a few degrees now.
