Why potential homebuyers shouldn’t wait for Fed to cut rates

According to the National Association of Realtors, existing home sales rose 3.1% in January, at a seasonally adjusted annual rate. Year-over-year, sales declined 1.7%. Among the different regions, the West saw sales accelerate the most. With mortgage rates rising and inventory remaining low, many are still very concerned and timid to enter the housing market.

Brad Case, Chief Economist at Middleburg Communities, joins Yahoo Finance to discuss the state of the housing market and how the current mortgage rates are influencing home owners and potential buyers.

When asked about recovery and if there will be hope when the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates, Case responds: “I don’t think that we should plan for the Fed to cut rates any time soon. That will, of course, mean that mortgage rates won’t come down very much any time soon either. So, potential home buyers should not be looking for big declines in mortgage rates. You should buy a house only because you found a house that you want to live in, you can’t live in that house unless you buy it.”

He continues with: “What we’ll really have to see is that the existing homeowners have to understand that they simply don’t have an asset that is worth as much as they are hoping it would, and that will help them to put more inventory on the market, and that will help the entire market.”

For more expert insight and the latest market action, click here to watch this full episode of Yahoo Finance Live.

Editor’s note: This article was written by Nicholas Jacobino