A word of advice for those looking to buy a home: don’t try to time the housing market, according to Dottie Herman, the CEO of Douglas Elliman Real Estate, one of America’s largest real estate firms.
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“I would always tell people if you find the house you love, buy it,” she told FOX Business’ Maria Bartiromo on “Mornings with Maria” on Thursday.
Case in point: The Federal Reserve could make buying a home a little more expensive, but not debilitating.
The Fed, on Wednesday, increased its benchmark interest rate by one-quarter of a percentage point and signaled two more rate increases are on the way. The decision could effectively increase borrowing costs, but Herman doesn’t expect higher rates to be a deal breaker. In recent weeks, the 30-year fixed mortgage rate climbed to its highest level in seven years.
“They’re going to go up,” she said. “But significantly they are still low if you average it out over the last 12 years.”
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The biggest problem right now, she said, is coming up with a down payment.
Even so, there’s help for that too.
“There’s companies that actually will give you half the down payment,” Herman added.
