I hope your August is off to a great start! I want to catch you up on some encouraging shifts in the mortgage and housing world, because this week actually brought some good news worth sharing.
Rates eased for a second straight week, settling near their lowest point in three weeks after Wednesday’s inflation report landed right in line with expectations. That “boring” outcome was exactly what the bond market wanted to see. Consumer prices rose just 0.1% in July, the second straight month of cooling inflation, with the annual core rate now sitting near its lowest level since early 2021. Add in oil prices retreating from their spring highs and a surprisingly soft July jobs report, and you have several factors working together to ease some of the pressure on borrowing costs.
That last jobs report is worth a closer look, too. Employers actually cut positions in July, and the prior two months were revised down by a combined 103,000 jobs. That’s welcome news for rates, since a cooler labor market takes some pressure off the Fed, but it’s also a reminder to stay financially prepared no matter which way the market moves.
We’re seeing that same story of contrasts in home sales. Nationally, sales slipped to a nearly two-year low in July, but the picture varies widely by city. Some markets are cooling as builders compete hard on incentives, while others, like West Palm Beach and San Francisco, are still going strong. The silver lining for buyers: sellers are getting more flexible, with a record share offering concessions this spring, which means more room to negotiate than we’ve seen in years.
If you’ve been waiting for the right moment, or you know someone who has, now is a great time to talk through what these shifts mean for your specific goals. I’m always just a call or email away, and I love helping you make sense of it all.
