Mortgage Rates Are Finally Shifting and Buyers Are Starting to Feel It

If you have been waiting for mortgage rates to come down, that moment has arrived. Rates are now in the lowest range they have been in nearly three years, and forecasts suggest they are likely to stay in this range through the rest of 2026.

That shift matters. A lot.

When rates were higher, many buyers felt priced out. Monthly payments stretched budgets, and homes that once felt achievable suddenly did not make sense. Now, with rates lower, affordability is starting to feel different. Monthly payments are more manageable, buying power improves, and more options begin to open up.

This change does not mean the market suddenly becomes easy. Prices, inventory, taxes, insurance, and personal finances still matter. But lower rates reduce one of the biggest barriers buyers have been facing over the past few years. For many people, that is enough to turn “maybe someday” into “maybe now.”

If buying a home did not work for you before, this is the time to take another look. Running the numbers with a lender can give you a clearer picture of what is possible today, not what was possible last year.

Sometimes the biggest shift is not in the market itself, but in what you can finally afford to do within it.