Tap In by Ashley Parrott

UNPRECEDENTED! What a year 2021 was for Real Estate!  As homeowners and investors alike were able to productively participate in the market by scooping up homes at extremely low interest rates or tapping into the equity of their personal homes…2021 brought skyrocketing home values to an all time high throughout the nation. To put this into perspective…Black Knight, a mortgage technology and research firm…stated that “Just in the third quarter of last year…homeowners held $9.4 trillion in equity for homeowners to tap into…which by the way is the largest amount ever recorded.”  HOLY SMOKES THAT’S A LOT OF MONEY! GEESH!

Taking advantage of all that readily available cash in a home becomes a bit more difficult as mortgage interest rates are on the rise…thanks, in part, to inflation and the Federal Reserve. Recent reports dictate that inflation has reached its highest level in decades…due, in part, to the CPI (Consumer Price Index), which measures the price of goods and services, surging almost 7% year over year and the fastest rate since June 1982. Sooooo…how are the Feds responding to this rapid increase? For starters, they are stating that we may see as many as three rate hikes this year, two more next year and another one in 2024!

What does this mean for you, my beloved followers? There is still time for you to plan to tap into your home equity by either a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) or refinancing your current mortgage at a low rate BEFORE we start to see the rates increase significantly! However, the window of opportunity is closing…and closing rather rapidly! Depending on your credit score and LTV (Loan to Value) of equity in your current home…rates at 3% or lower are still available.

So, what is my advice to my readers? If you have good credit, have equity in your home…you can still take advantage of the amazing low rates that still exist…BUT…I highly advise you do this before this summer!

If you have any questions or need any advice on whether or not you should refinance, get a HELOC to pay off those high interest credit cards that you have racked up and maxed out during the holidays…give me a call or send me a text…I would love to talk to you about any Real Estate or Mortgage questions that you may have! Most people don’t know this…but not only am I an EXCELLENT REALTOR…but I have been a mortgage loan officer as well for over 20 years..Ya girl knows what she is talking about!  I am well versed in both the Mortgage Industry as well as Real Estate… and always ready to assist!

MUCH LOVE…AND HAPPY 2022!