• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Sonoma County Mortgages

Contact Us About Mortgage Financing

All financing provided by New American Funding

(707) 217-4000 | Prequalify Now

Search Sonoma County Mortgages

  • Home
  • Purchase
    • How Much Down Payment To Buy A Home?
    • How Much Income You Need To Buy A Home
    • How Much Should I Save For Buying A Home?
      • How Rates Affect Payment
    • No PMI Mortgages
    • FHA Loans
    • Sonoma County Disaster Loans
    • Jumbo Loans
  • Refinance
    • Mortgage Rates
    • Does It Make Sense To Refinance?
      • Get Your Refi Paperwork In Order
    • How To Pay Off Your Loan Faster
    • How To Remove PMI
    • How Lenders Price & Quote Loans
  • Loan Programs
  • Payment Calculator
    • Mortgage Affordability Calculator
  • Blog
  • Videos
  • About SCM
  • About Scott Sheldon

Primary Sidebar

Sonoma County Mortgages is a part of New American Funding

New American Funding - NMLS #6606

Get Your Latest Rate Quote Now!

The new Sonoma County housing and mortgage rate market

February 22, 2018 by Scott Sheldon

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Pinterest Share on LinkedIn Share on Email
sonoma county housing and rates

The Sonoma County real estate market has changed considerably in the last few years. If you’re going to be purchasing or refinancing a house here is what you need to know…

The median house price in Sonoma County is $670,000 brought on by a few factors. Primarily, the Sonoma County housing market over the course of the last year has had very little supply of homes available on the marketplace. That, coupled with more consumer optimism has led to large demand driving housing prices higher creating more home equity for homeowners wishing to refinance or cash out for remodel projects. The historical wildfire in October 2017 has played a role as well furthering even more demand for housing.

Rates

Interest rates have risen sharply beginning at the tail end of January. It’s no surprise that these higher rates are a byproduct of a bigger stronger economy. Case in point rewind the clock a couple of years back to the year 2012 housing prices were extremely low as were interest rates and generally people were worried about potentially losing their jobs. The unemployment rate was high upwards of 8 + percent.

Fast forward to 2018 unemployment is extremely low, consumer optimism is high as is consumer confidence and more people are feeling optimistic about their overall financial well-being on the broader level. When people are feeling good about their financial profile they tend to spend. That spending has helped fuel a larger demand for housing driving housing prices up as well as being a catalyst for higher interest rates. The market today is high housing prices coupled interest rates in the middle to high 4’s.

Advice for home buyers
Get pre-approved with a local lender before going house hunting. On the bigger picture of things no one knows what’s going to happen with interest rates or housing prices moving forward and it’s virtually impossible to predict the next so-called crash. Compliance in the world of mortgage lending is incredibly strong and you still must show your ability to repay that mortgage. Waiting to purchase a house especially if rates continue to rise could end up costing you far more money in the bigger picture in terms of opportunity cost lost by paying higher rents or a higher interest rate on a mortgage if rates continue to rise.

If you’re trying to increase your borrowing power there’s only three ways to do that change loan programs, put more money down, pay off debt, get a cosigner or lower your purchase price point expectations.

Homeowners wishing to refinance
Gone are the days of sub 4% mortgage rates. Homeowners today should expect an interest rate in the middle to 4’s for 30-year fixed rate mortgages and low 4’s for 15-year fixed rate mortgages. If you took out your mortgage in the last few years, there is still a window of opportunity to drop mortgage insurance and refinance for example moving from an FHA loan into a conventional loan. The more common opportunities for refinancing would be to pay off debt, avoid a non-tax-deductible home equity line of credit or complete that long-overdue home Improvement project. Refinancing for getting a lower interest rate may not something the market supports if your current mortgage is 4.25% or lower. Most homeowners who were unable to do any refinancing in years past when housing prices are lower now more than likely have the equity needed to complete their financial goals.

Looking to get a mortgage or know your options? Begin with a hassle free quote now.

Related Mortgage Advice from Scott Sheldon

  • Comparing Mortgage Rates In Sonoma County

    What to look for in comparing mortgage rates in Sonoma County. The Federal Reserve came…

  • The Truth About The Media’s Reporting On Interest Rates
    The Truth About The Media's Reporting On Interest Rates

    Have ever heard about mortgage rates in the media only to then call a mortgage…

  • 2017 mortgage rate environment
    The 2017 Mortgage Rate Environment

    The mortgage industry has gone through some changes in the last three months. If you…

  • 2018 high balance mortgage loans
    FHFA Increases 2018 Sonoma County Loan Limits

    The Federal Housing Finance Agency just released the new 2018 national loan limits. These loan…

Filed Under: Interest Rates, Loan Programs, Loan Qualifying, Mortgage Shopping Tagged With: high interest rates, housing, mortgage and homes, mortgage lender, mortgage rate quote, mortgages, preapproval to buy a home, qualifying for a mortgage, refinancing my mortgage, Santa Rosa mortgages, sonoma county home buying, sonoma county refinancing

Get Sonoma County Mortgages News and Updates in Your Inbox

Footer

SCM on Facebook

SonomaCountyMortgages.com

Connect on Facebook

SCM On Instagram

Follow Sonoma County Mortgages on Instagram

Follow on Instagram

SCM on Zillow

Zillow Reviews for Scott Sheldon, New American Funding

See Reviews on Zillow

Location & Contact

Sonoma County Mortgages and New American Funding are an Equal Opportunity Housing Lender

Scott Sheldon, Senior Loan Officer
NMLS ID# 287389
2455 Bennett Valley Road C107
Santa Rosa, CA 95405
1-707-217-4000
View SCM Map | Email Us!

Map of Sonoma County Mortgages New American Financing Office

View Map on Google

Copyright 2010–2023 SonomaCountyMortgages.com · About Us · Sonoma County Loans · Privacy Policy · Terms Of Use · Legal · Site Map

NMLS Consumer Access © New American Funding. All rights Reserved. NMLS ID#6606.
Corporate Office 14511 Myford Road, Suite 100, Tustin, CA 92780. We at New American Funding take great pride in our customer service and make it our number one priority. We encourage you to contact us for complaint resolution or any post-closing questions you may have regarding the servicing of your loan. We strive to have your experience with New American Funding a stellar one. In the rare case that our service did not meet your expectations, please call our customer care hotline at 1-800- 450-2010, ext. 7100 or you may contact us by email customerservice@nafinc.com. Please leave a detailed message and we will follow up with you no later than the end of the next business day. If you are using a screen reader or other auxiliary aid and are having problems using this website, please call 800-450-2010 Ext. 7100 for assistance.

State Licensing (Opens in New Window) | Privacy (Opens in New Window)
Terms of Use (Opens in New Window) | Electronic Consent Agreement (Opens in New Window)
Opens in new window Opens an external site Opens an external site in a new window