Yes — but I would call it a “good time to buy carefully,” not a “great time to buy.” The current market actually gives you some advantages that weren’t available to buyers a couple of years ago.
What’s happening right now?
1. Mortgage rates are the biggest negative.
As of October 1, Freddie Mac’s national average 30-year fixed rate was 7.28%, up from 7.03% the prior week and 6.34% a year earlier. Today’s market is still around the mid-7% range.
That’s expensive financing, so I would not stretch your budget simply because you qualify for a certain loan amount.
2. Buyers have more negotiating power.
This is the interesting part. NWMLS reported that active listings across its service area were up 24.5% year over year at the end of September—the highest inventory level since 2014.
Higher rates are discouraging buyers, which means you’re competing against fewer people.
That can translate into:
- More seller price reductions
- More negotiating leverage
- Seller-paid closing costs
- Rate-buydown opportunities
- Less pressure to waive protections
- More time to inspect and evaluate a house
So should you buy now? I’d use this test:
Buy now if:
- You expect to stay in the home 5–7+ years
- You have your down payment plus a healthy emergency fund
- The payment is comfortable at today’s rate
- You don’t need rates to fall in order to afford the house
- You find a house you genuinely like at a reasonable price
- You can negotiate meaningful concessions from the seller
Wait if:
- The payment at ~7.5% would make your budget uncomfortable
- Buying would drain most of your savings
- You’re counting on refinancing in the near future
- You’re buying primarily because you’re afraid prices will rise
- You’d be willing to buy a house you don’t really want just to “get in”
One thing I’d do differently in today’s market
I wouldn’t wait solely for mortgage rates to fall. There’s a reasonable possibility that rates eventually decline, but there’s no guarantee they’ll fall quickly. And if rates do drop substantially, more buyers could come back into the market, potentially giving sellers more leverage. Instead, I’d look for a good house at a good price today, while negotiating aggressively.
For example, if you found a $500,000 home and negotiated the seller down to $485,000 plus a seller-paid rate buydown, that could be more valuable than simply waiting and hoping mortgage rates fall.
My recommendation for you
Based on what you’ve been researching, I would keep shopping rather than sit out the market. But I’d establish a hard monthly-payment ceiling first, then shop within it. The next step I’d suggest: let’s figure out your actual comfortable purchase price in Mount Vernon at today’s rates—including property taxes, homeowners insurance. Then we can determine whether buying now makes financial sense versus waiting 6–12 months.
