4 Things To Look For In The 2022 Housing Market

If you’re in the market to buy a home—or on the fence about whether to dive into the housing market right now—here’s what reports and interviews from economists and analysts predict will happen in 2022.

According to Realtor.com, right now, we’re still facing mortgage rates near historic lows—some 30-year rates are still near 3% and some 15-year rates near 2%—but pros do predict a rise. Dr. Lawrence Yun, National Association of Realtors (NAR) chief economist, forecasts the 30-year fixed mortgage rate to increase to 3.5% by the end of 2022 as the Fed raises interest rates to control inflation. For its part, Realtor.com predicts an average mortgage rate of 3.3% throughout the year, hitting 3.6% by end of year. And Bankrate, after yesterday’s Fed meeting, simply wrote that: “Interest rate hikes, soaring inflation and a smaller bond-buying program are a recipe for higher mortgage rates in 2022.”