Homebuyers Are ‘Sitting Tight,’ Waiting for Lower Mortgage Rates—Why One Agent Says They Should Act Now

If you’re considering buying a home but keeping one eye on the latest mortgage rates, the time to pull the trigger on an offer might be now. 

The weekly average 30-year fixed mortgage rate dropped to 6.58% this week, the lowest level in 10 months, and the median mortgage payment is down to $2,616, the cheapest it’s been since early 2025, according to a Redfin report. That’s been enough to draw some buyers into the market (pending sales rose 1.6% year-over-year in the four weeks ending Aug. 27), but plenty of others are still keeping their powder dry, according to Ali Mafi, a Redfin Premier agent in San Francisco. 

“House hunters are feeling more confident about buying a home now that mortgage rates have started to decline,” Mafi said. “Some are making offers now, though others are sitting tight, betting that rates will fall further. I’m telling buyers to act now because it’s still a buyer’s market and most sellers are willing to negotiate. If rates do plummet, the market will get competitive.”

There were 36.3% more sellers in the housing market than buyers last month, which is the widest gap since 2013, per Redfin. In fact, sellers have outnumbered buyers for the past 15 months in the U.S. 

Economist Says Mortgage Rates Should Continue to Fall

So, should you buy now, as Mafi suggests? 

Jeffrey Roach, chief economist at LPL Financial, told Investopedia, “I don’t know if it’s quite time yet.”

The Federal Reserve is widely expected to cut interest rates at its September meeting, and many would-be buyers are hopeful that would drive mortgages lower, too. It isn’t that simple, Roach warned, but buyers could still benefit down the line.

“Fed policy is not one-for-one on the retail mortgage market,” Roach said. “There are other things going on besides that. However, I think it is helpful to know that the directional pressure is positive. It’s in the right direction for mortgage rates.

“My expectation [is] mortgage rates will be lower than they are today by the time we turn the clock into 2026,” he added.

The Bottom Line

Mortgage rates are as low as they’ve been in almost a year, and by the numbers we’re in a buyer’s market. If you can afford to buy, now could be the time.

That said, mortgage rates could continue to fall over the next several months, particularly if a rate cut from Federal Reserve applies downward pressure.