2-1 Buydowns Explained: The Key To Housing Affordability

Here’s how 2-1 buydowns can make purchasing a home more affordable.

Selling your home can be an exciting yet daunting experience. It’s often a significant financial transaction, and, understandably, you want everything to go smoothly. To ensure a successful sale and maximize your profits, you need to avoid some common pitfalls that can end up costing you dearly. Today, we’ll discuss the top three costly mistakes you must steer clear of when selling your home:

1. How 2-1 buydowns work. A 2-1 buydown works by putting money upfront to lower your mortgage interest rate for the first two years of your loan. The first year, your rate will be 2% lower; the year after that, it will be 1% lower. Then, it will return to normal. This is a fantastic way to ease into your mortgage payment and lower the upfront cost of your loan. If you need to sell, they are also a great concession to offer to your buyers.

“This situation can be a win-win for buyers and sellers.”

2. You can get your seller to pay the upfront cost. Good buyers are hard to find in this housing market due to higher rates. Many sellers are willing to offer concessions to ensure they don’t have to lower their asking price, especially if you have a good agent negotiating for you. This means you can have your seller pay the upfront cost of your 2-1 buydown, and you can sit back and enjoy the discount.

3. You can refinance when rates come back down. While we probably won’t see rates as low as 3% or 4% again for a long time, most experts agree that interest rates are likely to come down within the next year or two. This timeline fits perfectly with a 2-1 buydown! You can enjoy the benefits and simply refinance to a lower interest rate when your buydown is set to expire.

The bottom line is that 2-1 buydowns are the best way to purchase a home in this market. If you need to sell, they also make a fantastic incentive to offer to your buyers and keep your listing price high. It’s a win-win situation!

I have plenty of experience negotiating 2-1 buydowns for my clients, so if you have any questions or are interested in buying or selling a home, please call or email me. I am always willing to help!

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