Mortgage Rates
Just when I thought rates were going to cross 4% and head to 4.5%, they are back down to 3.625%. It’s a great time to lock in a rate as the consensus is that the Fed will be raising rates soon. With unemployment at 5.3 nearly 50% of its recent peak a few years ago and the US economy doing well, the pundits are all predicting the Fed will hike rates as soon as this month.
Other factors that are key indicators for interest rates are sending mixed signals. The price of Oil is down considerably as is Gold. There is turmoil in China and other parts of the world. So there is a possibility that rates will not change. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for continued low rates.
When the Fed increases rates, it is the discount rate that is increased. The discount rate is the rate that the Fed lends money to banks. That rate is currently at .25%, near zero. Although the Fed does not directly raise Mortgage interest rates, historically when they increase the discount rate, usually the mortgage rates are affected.
Montgomery Mortgage rates are always competitive and continue to be .125% to .25% lower than the average market interest rates. Stay tuned for a Homebuyer seminar coming your way soon. We will be co-sponsoring one soon. You can check out www.HomeBuyer-Seminar.com Be sure to see the testimonial video. If you are interested in getting a notification of the next Seminar, please send me an email vibhasingh@montmtg.com The seminars are helpful whether you are first time homebuyer or you are a seasoned real estate buyer.
Real Estate Market
The New Jersey Association of Realtors recently released statistics for the Month of July. The New Jersey Real Estate Market in July was HOT! Check out these numbers:
| July 2014 | July 2015 | Percent Change | |
| New Listings | 14,852 | 15,443 | 4% |
| Pending Sales | 7,969 | 9,597 | 20.4% |
| Closed Sales | 9,713 | 10,426 | 13.7% |
| Median Sales Price | $309,000 | $312,500 | 1.1% |
| Avg Sales Price | $389,000 | $395,697 | 1.7% |
| % of List Price | 96.6% | 96.8% | .2% |
| Days on Market | 73 | 72 | -11.4% |
| Homes For Sale | 71,334 | 65,522 | -8.1% |
| Months Supply | 10.4 | 8.4 | -19.2 |
With the huge double digit increase in pending sales and closed sales as well as the double digit decrease in Months supply, you would think that the Average Sales Price would increase more than 1.1%. Although there are many other factors associated with raising interest rates, the New Jersey Real Estate market numbers would not be a reason to increase interest rates. In fact, the average sales price and median sales price increasing less then 2% would be a reason to keep rates flat or even lower.
It certainly is a healthy Real Estate market. If you are thinking of buying, get a mortgage soon before rates increase.