Recession fears are pushing U.S. homebuyers out of the housing market, but some experts say this is good news for those who are willing to stick it out.
without triggering a recession through a series of aggressive interest rate increases. This month, the central bank raised its target interest rate by 75 basis points. The hike was the Fed's third straight increase, following lifts in June and July. The move puts the key benchmark federal funds rate at a range of 3% to 3.25%, the highest since before the 2008 financial crisis. It also marks the fifth consecutive rate increase this year.
The steady rise in interest rates has left current homeowners reluctant to buy new homes because it would mean abandoning a cheaper mortgage for a more expense one. Current rates have also discouraged turning renters into homebuyers.Both trends have kept the supply of available homes low. Redfin data shows there were 1,767,543 homes for sale in the U.S. in August, up 3.4% year over year. The number of newly listed homes was 590,549, down 19.1% year over year.