Best time to buy: when interest rates are low or high?

Good morning, John -the time is right when you are ready and prepared. 

John Henry - What you described about being "underwater or near underwater" is especially true for people who bought new construction in 2007. 

It's a very interesting article you wrote and something to pay attention to as well. 

John,

Like Michael Jacobs said when you are ready to buy regardless of interest rates or any other blah, blah.  And yes, it is blah blah aka excuses.  A

John Henry  I just had this conversation and I agree with Patricia Feager, MBA, CRS, GRI,MRP  many people who bought way back when interest rates were high (18% ) when they went to refinance discovered they had a pre-penalty clause in their mortgage and it was pretty hefty too

John Henry - to pick up where Hannah Williams left off, I had two buyers (both new construction) in 2007 when the market took a sharp hairpin turn shortly thereafter. The stress level on both buyers was severe. One continues to live in the house and made it through the toughest times of their life. The other couple had a bad taste in their mouth and as soon as the market started to shift into a more positive direction for them and they were out of the woods, they asked me to list and sell it. I did and they bought another home, thankfully with me. 

Everything that Hannah brought up is true! Homeowners were trapped in a neverland situation. No matter what decision they made, it cost them plenty and tremendous stress. Agents were helpless, working harder than ever to help them get out of their rabbit holes. I pray we never see days like that again or anything worse. 

What stood out to me is the assumption that if interest rates are high, home prices are lower.  That's not always the case but interest points here and love the comments!

Morning John.

Just because interest rates rise doesn't (in all cases) demand that prices go down. IMHO, it all depends on the local market

I agree with Patricia Feager, MBA, CRS, GRI,MRP 100% - Some of the new construction, purchased in 2007 has just recently shown some good escrow, allowing owners to sell and buy again. Sadly, many are choosing new construction once again. 

If you don't have plans to stay put for 10 years (and sometimes we never know), a resale is the smarter choice - regardless of the interest rates, John.

As for pre-payment penalties - thankfully, those have been done away with for years now, allowing for those who purchase at high interest rates to take advantage of a future lower rate.

I’ve heard more about low interest rates being the way to go in most contexts in most situations.

Smart consumers are anxious to take advantage of the current low mortgage interest rates. Higher rates will make it more difficult for many to qualify.

The time to buy is always good.  It is really a personal decision that is very emotional.

The lower interest rates can mean the difference to those who have very limited budgets to purchase a home. I'm not sure the prices drop dramatically enough to make up the shortfall in their loan approval abilities. But, hey, I guess it could happen.  And, I guess the bottom line, as others have said,  the time to buy is when you can. Regardless. D