One Team Real Estate

U.S. long-term mortgage rates were flat to slightly higher this week after three straight weeks of declines, as the historically low levels continue as an incentive for potential homebuyers.

US mortgages flat to slightly higher; 30-year loan at 3.47% Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell told Congress this week that the U.S. economy appears durable, with steady growth and unemployment near a half-century low, but faces risks from the widening viral outbreak that began in China.

While buyers will benefit from favorable mortgage rates, which remain near historic lows, the heightened competition and scant supply of homes on the market is expected to push prices higher, stretching the limit of what would-be buyers can afford.

Rates may be low, but the housing shortage is expected to push prices higher A strong labor market and growing pool of would-be buyers as more millennials enter their thirties is expected to fuel demand for homes at a time when the inventory of properties for sale is at the lowest level in more than a decade.

Avoid blunders and get the storage space and layout you need by asking these questions before you begin

9 Questions to Ask When Planning a Kitchen Pantry Doors that open inward onto shelving, badly arranged racks and compartments, small cubbies with no room for appliances, a lack of hooks for towels and aprons, and poorly positioned lighting are all mistakes that can be circumvented