Home Loan Lender Shares Advice On Market As Inflation Reaches Lowest Point In 2 Years

A consumer report released in the past week reveals inflation is at its lowest point since 2021.

While it may be good news, it doesn’t immediately turn around increasing interest rates from the Federal Reserve.

CBS News reported its expected rates will increase again in July, despite not increasing in June.

But the good news and bad news mix is a common issue for real estate professionals as they navigate different challenges for sellers and buyers posed by the higher interest rates.

“There is some hesitancy with buyers to buy because they think the rate is too high,” said Richard Whittington, who runs a real estate brokerage in Oklahoma City. “They’re going to wait for it to go down.”

But, Whittington said buyers don’t always have to wait on their ideal home. Refinancing is possible when rates become more favorable, and some motivated sellers are offering incentives; particularly for new builds.

“We want to be able to see everybody have the opportunity to buy, and I think we’re getting more toward a market where it will allow that,” he said.

Perspective also matters. When Whittington entered the real estate market in the 1980s, he purchased his first home at an interest rate of 16%, which is substantially more than the current rate.

Home loan lender Chris Miller wants buyers to know there’s other factors which can drive up the monthly cost of a home.

“You want to look at your payments, not necessarily just the interest rate,” he said. “There’s a lot of things that go into a payment, [it’s] not just the interest rate that factors into it. Insurance rates are huge, too.”

Miller and Whittington also said some sellers may even offer to buy down part of the interest rate on a home loan — temporarily — to close the deal.

But, those are offers which frequently need to be negotiated or fought for.