Thinking of buying a Atlanta property? Mortgage rates are still near all-time lows, but are being pulled in different directions right now. Borrowers who want to grab these unbelievable rates should act now before the tug-o-war ends.
The Federal Reserve has been doing whatever it can to hold rates down, including printing billions of dollars per month to buy mortgage bonds. But higher mortgage fees, imposed by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, will push rates up later this fall.
Starting Nov. 1, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will raise the guarantee fees they charge loan originators. On average, this increase translates into about a quarter of 1 percentage point in interest. It’s almost like the higher fees will be canceled out by the Fed’s open-ended buying program, or QE3.
Rates will likely stay near the lows until the election, he says. What happens next is anyone’s guess.
What if after the election, they say, “We’re stopping (the bond-buying program) tomorrow…” Borrowers who are on the fence should act soon. There is no reason to hold off on buying a Atlanta property or refinancing at these levels.
Changes Coming for Atlanta Property Short Sales
A series of new short-sale guidelines that go into effect Nov. 1 are supposed to make the process of short selling easier and speedier. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will allow servicers to streamline the short-sale process for borrowers who are in financial hardship and homeowners who have to sell their homes because of a divorce, disability or job transfer. The expedited process will open the door to more short sales as an alternative to foreclosures.
Frank Nothaft, VP and chief economist with Freddie Mac, said in a recent statement that “the latest economic indicators point toward low inflation but gradually stronger economic activity which placed further upward pressure on long-term Treasury yields and, in turn, fixed mortgage rates.”
