Home buyers have a great many things to think about when working toward closing a loan on a new home. A great many documents, surveys, inspections, negotiations, and of course their loan, are all in the mix. We speak to a great many homeowners about refinancing and buyers about their initial mortgage at length every day.
As the interest rate is of great concern to most of them, let's take a historic look at rates to put them into perspective in today's market. Freddie Mac has a chart going back more than 20 years, so we used that data to compile this chart.
This is the rate for July of every year from 1989 through July this year. Take a look at that really tiny blue bar for 2009. It's hard to argue the fact that this is a great year to take out a new home loan or refinance. That's if all the other factors are right for you as well. Don't let the interest rate be your primary criteria, or let it cause drastic changes in your timing. It isn't possible to predict with certainty where rates will be one week or a month down the road.
Make the mortgage interest rate an important part of your decision, but only as part of a careful balance of your housing needs, location, job status and affordability.