After the pandemic, a rapid rise in home prices coincided with stubbornly high mortgage rates, shutting out potential buyers.
In some cases, people with better credit scores may pay more in fees, while those with lower credit scores will pay less.
A mortgage relief company in California operating under at least 10 different names is temporarily shut down and its assets frozen under court order, accused of bilking homeowners out of millions of dollars.
More loans now do not have a "prepayment penalty," making it easier to refinance when rates drop.
Spending just one more dollar could save you tens of thousands of dollars over the life of the loan.
"Contrary to popular belief," says one loan officer, "Every interest rate that a homebuyer ends up with is pretty much custom-made or tailored to their specific situation."