Given the current real estate situation during the pandemic – 30-year mortgage rates in the low 3% range and 15-year mortgages below 3% – it’s not surprising that refinancing represents 71.6 percent of all applications (218 percent higher than 2019). What is surprising is that homebuyer applications increased by 12 percent in April (although 20 percent less than last year).
Moreover, listing websites and real estate brokers are reporting somewhat higher buyer activity in the recent weeks indicating that buyer confidence may be increasing.
Of course, the situation remains very much in flux. Unemployment continues to rise – some say it could go as high as 32 percent – while some lenders are limiting mortgage products as the mortgage bailout program unfolds.
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