CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Right now, there is a ripple effect after Fitch Ratings’ decision to drop the US credit rating.
As a result, mortgage giants Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae also just saw their ratings fall slightly, and that’s impacting those looking to buy a home.
21-year-old Diego Rodriguez is a first-time homeowner. He bought his house about a month ago and tells us that although buying a home could seem intimidating, there is help available.
“You just have to take it step by step, and you know, not be scared. Life is about chances, and there are a lot of programs for first-time buyers like I myself. I am young. I wanted to buy a house for my mom and for my family,” Rodriguez said.
Like many new potential homeowners, the first steps could be pretty scary, but KM Premier Real Estate’s broker Lauren De La Garza said this isn't necessarily a bad thing.
“Just because the rates are on the high end that we have seen in the recent years doesn’t mean that the buyer can’t refinance in the years to come," she said."And in that situation, they are in the house that they love without becoming in a bidding war with somebody else like we saw a few years ago when the rates were really low, so it has, in fact turned it into a buyers market.”
De La Garza said home affordability is affected by the buyers' interest rates, but it’s not high enough to cause concern among potential buyers.
“I put in money for earnest money, and I actually ended up getting money back on closing with the negotiation we had with the previous home buyers. It just worked out that way,” Rodriguez added.
De La Garza helped Rodriguez buy his first home, and he added how important it is to have a good realtor in your corner.
Something else impacting home buyers is the federal reserve's raising interest rates in response to rising inflation, which directly impacted mortgage rates.
And the federal reserve has signaled more increases are likely this year.
