The median U.S. mortgage payment was $2,361 during the four weeks ending Dec. 31, according to a new report from Redfin.
That’s down $372 (-14 percent) from October’s all-time high to its lowest level in nearly a year.
“There have been more tours and more offers on my listings since mortgage rates started declining,” Las Vegas Redfin agent Shay Stein said in a release. “It’s all about perspective: Two years ago, buyers would have cried about a 6 percent mortgage rate. Now, they’re happy they’ve dropped down to the mid-6s.”
Early-stage homebuying demand is starting to pick up as buyers take advantage of lower rates and more homes to choose from. New listings are up 10 percent year over year, Redfin added.
Redfin’s homebuyer demand index — a seasonally adjusted measure of requests for tours and other homebuying services from Redfin agents — is up 10 percent from a month ago to its highest level since August. Pending sales are down just 3 percent annually, the smallest decline in two years.