The Cascade Team Blog - Homes For Sale

When Will Mortgage Rates Come Down? Here’s When 9 Experts Say It Will Happen.

•          High mortgage rates make it difficult for prospective homebuyers to enter the market.
•          Mortgage rates could decline if the Federal Reserve cuts interest rates next year.
•          Here are nine projections from experts on when the Fed's first-rate cut will come.

High mortgage rates have effectively frozen the US housing market. And while lower rates could be on the horizon, Americans might have to wait awhile.

The average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is over 7.4%, up from roughly 3% at the beginning of 2022. This has deterred prospective first-time homebuyers from taking the plunge and made existing homeowners reluctant to sell their homes and buy another — they'd rather stick with the super low rates they…

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3 Reasons To Lock In A Mortgage Rate Today!

Following months of encouraging signs that inflation was finally cooling, a new report showed that it ticked back up in July. With the benchmark interest rate already at a 22-year high and mortgage interest rates the highest they've been since 2000, many buyers may elect to sit on the sidelines and wait for the rate environment to improve. That said, there's no clear insight into when that improvement will actually take place. Nor do experts know how much rates will even fall. With this forecast unclear, it may still make sense for buyers to act now.

3 reasons why it's worth locking in a mortgage rate now.

There are multiple compelling reasons buyers may want to lock in a mortgage rate now. Here are three things to consider. 

Rates could go…

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Cruel Summer Of Increasing Home Prices & Mortgage Rates Comes To a Close—Why Fall Should Bring Buyers Hope

By Margaret Heidenry

Mortgage rates just jumped to their highest level in 20 years, averaging 7.09% for a 30-year fixed-rate home loan as of Aug. 17, according to Freddie Mac.

In addition to home loan rates hitting their highest levels in two decades, home prices edged upward for the week ending Aug. 12 compared with this same time period last year.

“For the third consecutive week, the median home listing price maintained a slight upward trajectory,” says Realtor.com® economic data manager Sabrina Speianu in her analysis.

Why record-high mortgage rates affect both homebuyers and sellers.

Record-high mortgage rates aren’t just weighing down buyers—they’re tethering sellers to their homes, too.

Speianu explains that most homeowners…

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As mortgage rates hit 7%, Is There a Magic Interest Rate Number That Will Convince Homeowners to Sell?

Story by Aarthi Swaminathan

Homeowner Marie Cantu, 35, lives just outside of Seattle, and has been looking to buy a single-family home outside of Boston to be closer to her family.

The mom-of-five has been “seriously looking” for three-bedroom homes for the last six months. Cantu is hoping to rent her home in Washington, and move roughly before the school year starts, so that her children can adjust better to the new neighborhood. Cantu, a stay-at-home mother, homeschools her children. 

Higher rates make housing more expensive — and less affordable — for aspiring homeowners. They have also been a major factor in keeping would-be home sellers out of the housing market.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Federal Reserve raised the benchmark rate by 25…

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Great Home Buyer Expectations (Rising Rates and Low Inventory) Home Affordability is What You Make of it.

Earlier predictions were that home prices would fall due to rising interest rates. Simply put, that hasn’t happened. While higher rates have slowed appreciation and added a few extra days on the market, home prices are actually climbing at about 4% this year, which is right in line with inflation. That main reason for this is simple supply and demand economics. Most of the country is sitting at historically low levels of inventory.

Sellers have been able to hold fairly strong this year even in the face of continued high interest rates and recession fears. The biggest contributing factor here has been the lack of inventory. People still have to buy due to job and lifestyle reasons such as growing families. With many people holding onto their homes…

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The Cascade Team Voted Neighborhood Favorite on NextDoor!

The Cascade Team is extremely honored to be recognized as the “Neighborhood Favorite” in Issaquah by NextDoor!

Thank you to our neighbors! We are honored to be voted a 2023 @Nextdoor Neighborhood Fave. This award means so much for our business and helps us become more recognizable in our community.

“Neighbors know best, and Nextdoor’s Neighborhood Faves are the only annual awards celebrating the businesses that are most loved by locals. This prestigious recognition is only awarded to 1% of the local businesses on Nextdoor and is a testament to the positive impact they have had on their community,” said Nextdoor CEO Sarah Friar.

At The Cascade Team we understand first and foremost that it isn't about "Us". It's all about "You"! We are…

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Despite High Interest Rates Buyers Compete Over Low Inventory

“Although at a lower velocity than previous years, low inventory and higher interest rates keep the overall market in a more balanced state as sales keep pace with new and existing inventory,”

KIRKLAND, Washington (July 6, 2023) – Brokers with Northwest Multiple Listing Service reported their highest volume of closed sales last month (6,842) since September 2022’s total (7,504) as buyers competed for limited inventory.

The Northwest MLS report summarizing June activity showed there were about six weeks of supply (1.55 months), with twelve of the 26 counties having less than two months of inventory. Among those were King, Kitsap, Pierce and Snohomish counties, where nearly 55% of the inventory is located. Five counties reported having more than…

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Don’t Be Left In The Dark When Selling Your Home

In today’s changing market, there’s more to a successful closing than just getting the offer accepted. Make sure you have an agent capable of guiding you from start to close!

The old school three p’s — “Plant a sign, Post on the MLS and Pray” — employed by some agents in hot markets, will not work as things begin to cool off. The adage, “You have a minute to sell your home,” beginning the moment a prospective buyer pulls up in front of a property, is no longer true.

That minute has become 10 seconds or less and happens on a buyer’s mobile device nowhere near the listing. If buyers do not like what they see, no amount of open house signs will get them into your listing — they will swipe left and move on.

This year’s market is not the same as…

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Gain Your Independence From High Real Estate Commissions

High Impact Real Estate Marketing & 1% MLS Listing Commissions For Today’s Home Sellers

The Cascade Team Real Estate is a company like no other because of the marketing, service and home seller savings we provide. We understand that in today’s real estate & home selling environment, we need to provide a high level of real estate service and widespread marketing of the home for sale, utilize technology to keep our home seller clients in the communication loop and provide added value to both buyers and home sellers in the real estate transaction. The effective use of technology tools allows our local real estate agents to focus more of their time on servicing our clients and finding buyers for your home, all the while providing the most comprehensive…

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Un-Lock up to 85% Of Your Home’s Equity (Buy Before You Sell!)

How it works

1)      Unlock equity from your home with ease.

Discover the amount of equity you’re able to unlock from your current home with no fee or commitment. We'll evaluate your property property for the program and let you know how much of your equity you can unlock for the purchase of your new home.

2)      Help you buy your dream home with confidence.

The Cascade Team will enable you to make a strong offer on your new home without a home sale contingency - and move on your schedule. You are able to move in immediately upon closing.

3)      You Have 10 days to list your prior home on the open market after closing on your new home.

You then have an additional 90 days for your Cascade Team agent to get your prior home under…

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