If you’ve borrowed money over the past few years, you’ve been a part history that might not be repeated again. Since the housing collapse of 2008, interest rates have been so low you’d have to squint in order to see them. It has now been seven years since the infamous collapse and we as a country have slowly but surely picked ourselves up and made the best of it. Sure, there are still some parts of the country, like Detroit, that may never rebound to the place they once were. But overall, things are looking optimistic.
Sounds good, right? Well not so fast. Generally speaking, when the economy is doing well the interest rates tend to rise. The government lowered interest rates after the economic crisis to encourage borrowing and spending in order to keep the economy afloat. Now that we have rebounded there seems to be a likelihood that interest rates will rise once again.
We’ve been fortunate over the past couple of years to not to have seen higher interest rates. You would have thought the government would’ve raised the rates by now, but they have been cautious as to not damage an already fragile economy that is still getting back on its feet.
Experts are predicting that we could see interest rates in the neighborhood of 5% by the end of the year. While this may come as a shock to many, that number still isn’t as high as pre-crisis levels of over 6%.
While business experts like Mark Cuban are speculating there’s a tech bubble larger than the 2000 bubble, there’s a general consensus that these rates are headed back up. Sure those pockets of the economy can have some effect on the overall picture, but historically speaking we are still in the window of opportunity.
If you were to step back and look at the overall housing market, history of interest rates, and the current condition of our economy, you’d see that 2015 is a good time to jump into buying a home. Don’t worry about not hitting while rates were at rock bottom. Now is still a great opportunity to get locked into an affordable rate that will be pleasing for years to come – especially if you are renting. This is your time to be a part of history.