Sponsored by Korman Gerrity Real Estate

I’m Joe Gerrity, local businessman, investor and Real Estate Broker. For my monthly “Yo Joe!” column, I’ll be answering your real estate questions as well as providing market information and housing statistics.

I believe the main responsibilities of a Realtor are to add value and facilitate mutually beneficial transactions, and through this column I hope to help the New Orleans community make more informed decisions about their housing future.

Yo Joe! What do rising interest rates mean for the housing market?

Generally speaking, it’s not great. While still not too far from historical lows, and definitely below the 30-year average, rates are rising across the board. From single and multi-family, to commercial and renovation loans, the cost to borrow money is going up. It’s increasing the cost to own homes, and in most cases, that is detrimental to a buyer’s ability to buy a home. There will be less buyers qualified to buy certain properties, and it may very well price certain people out of their preferred area. Continue reading »