Home for Sale in Sandy Springs GA

The Housing
market, which has been in a down cycle for more
then four years, has a new challenge? interest
rates have jumped nearly 1% point in the last
month.

Some say the threat
isn’t major, even though higher rates increase a
buyer’s monthly payment, the price buyers are
paying for homes have declined dramatically.

Some think the
rates have reached a level where they will
really cause problems with affordability because
values are still extremely good. In some
counties, the median price of a home was
$160,000 last month, down from $25,000 two
months ago. This is devastating to some, but the
number of homes sold has increase for 10
consecutive months.

Policy makers at
the Federal Reserve have indicated they want to
keep the rates low, in an effort to stimulate
the economy. The effort worked, rates hit a 37
year low in December of 2008. In the last three
weeks, mortgage interest rates have jumped to
the highest point in nearly seven months. Last
week, 30 year fixed rate mortgages averaged 5.59
percent, according to Freddie Mac up from 4.92% 
in May of 2008. An addition of 1 point, can add
approximately $62. a month to a mortgage payment
on 100k loan. On a 30 year fixed, the payment
before taxes and insurance is about $520.00 at
4.75%. it jumps to about $540.00 at 5.75%. That
difference might be enough to keep some home
buyers at bay, or it might be the reason why
some are buying now because they fear rates will
continue to rise.

Buyers are still
shaky. They are slow to act even with the
incentives offered by the Federal Government
$8,000 in tax incentives and $1,800 from the
Estate of Georgia. some gotten used to rock
bottom rates. The historic low level of recent
months has brought in homeowners who refinanced
older loans at he lower rate.

Rates are still
low, home buyers should take full advantage of
these historic low Real Estate, Low mortgage
rates and Government incentives.