Last Thursday, Freddie Mac announced that their 30-year fixed mortgage rate was over 3% (3.02%) for the first time since last July. That news dominated real estate headlines that day and the next. Articles talked about the “negative impact” it may have on the housing market. However, we should realize two things: 1. The bump-up in rate should not have surprised anyone. Many had already projected that rates would rise slightly as we proceeded through the year. 2. Freddie Mac’s comments

We’re currently experiencing historically low mortgage rates. Over the last fifty years, the average on a Freddie Mac 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has been 7.76%. Today, that rate is 2.81%. Flocks of homebuyers have been taking advantage of these remarkably low rates over the last twelve months. However, there’s no guarantee rates will remain this low much longer. Whenever we try to forecast mortgage rates, we should consider the advice of Mark Fleming, Chief Economist at First American: “You know, the fallacy of economic forecasting is