Could mortgage rates end August near their monthly lows?
The national average for a 30-year, fixed rate mortgage ended Wednesday’s session at 7.06%, down 0.06%* from Tuesday.
With Wednesday’s continued cool off, the national average for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage is at its lowest level in three weeks. That’s not far from the low set on August 4th of 7.03%.
This week’s downturn has been spurred by weaker than expected economic data. While there are a few potential market movers coming on Thursday, the next announcement with the potential to move mortgage rates is Friday’s jobs report. Another round of lower than expected jobs data may continue to push the market and mortgage rates a bit lower.
What about U.S. home sales data?
U.S. pending home sales data rose for the second month in a row according to the July 2023 update released yesterday. Pending home sales data from the National Association of Realtors showed sales were up 0.9% comparing July to June.
“The small gain in contract signings shows the potential for further increases in light of the fact that many people have lost out on multiple home buying offers,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist.
Yun also observed that home prices in certain regions are cooling off, and stated, “The West region experienced a meaningful price decline in the past year and buyers are quickly returning, as a result.”
How much has investor home buying dropped in the U.S. this year?
In a recent report from Investopedia, as of the end of the 2nd quarter investor home purchases have fallen 45% since last year. Investor home sales accounted for 15.6% of the market in this year’s second quarter. That’s down from 19.7% last year.
The change in the market puts investor homebuying at the lowest level in the past seven years.
This could potentially help spur the market to move towards a buyer’s market if investment dollars continue to stay on the sidelines. Fewer buyers competing for houses could help make conditions more favorable for folks looking for a place to live.
* National average rates accurate as of 8/30/23 from MortgageNewsDaily.com and are not advertised rates from Guaranteed Rate.
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