Homeowners Say 5% is the Magic Number to Make Them Move

With the average rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage now above 7% — many homeowners are reluctant to sell. At today’s rates, most homeowners would need to finance a new home at a higher rate than the rate they currently hold, adding hundreds of dollars a month to their mortgage payment. That has created an incentive to stay where they are.

However, recent reports found that homeowners are nearly twice as willing to sell their home if their mortgage rate is 5% or higher, according to Zillow, and 71% of prospective home buyers who plan to purchase their next home with a mortgage said they would not accept a rate above 5.5% — that is the “magic mortgage rate,” according to a survey by John Burns Research & Consulting.