Ascent Home Loans

Many of you may remember when the Fed issued the statement that they would be taking over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that interest rates dropped 5/8 to 3/4 of a point overnight.  That had been a drop from 6.50% to 5.25%. Unfortunately, it only lasted 4 days and many borrowers felt they had missed out on the short lived opportunity.

However, last week when the Fed announced they were going to buy up to $100 billion in Fannie/Freddie debt and $500 billion of mortgage backed securities backed by Fannie, Freddie and GNMA, interest rates once again dropped down to levels of 5.125% to 5.50% for 30 year fixed.

For those that missed out on refinancing, now is the time to take advantage of this drop. If you have an interest rate that is above the current rates that I mentioned, or you have an adjustable interest rate, now might be a good time to get out from under those increasing rates and move into a fixed loan.

For those about to purchase a home, it’s a slightly different story. If you are looking for a home or just in the process of thinking about purchasing a home you must weigh all factors. Yes, rates are down, but are home prices going lower? If these rates stabilize here, will that also stabilize the housing market? Even the experts can’t agree. However, if you have found that property that is the perfect home, then now may be the time for you to get pre-approved to see exactly what you can or cannot approve for.