What will happen to home prices if mortgage rates stay high this year? Experts weigh in

MoneyWatch: Managing Your Money What will happen to home prices if mortgage rates stay high this year? Experts weigh in We may receive commissions from some links to products on this page. Promotions are subject to availability and retailer terms. .chip { background-image: url('/fly/bundles/cbsnewscore/images/chip-bgd/chip-bgd-moneywatch.jpg'); } By Tim Maxwell Tim Maxwell Tim Maxwell is a freelance writer who covers investing, real estate, banking, credit education and other personal finance topics. Read Full Bio Tim Maxwell June 9, 2026 / 8:00 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google Elevated mortgage interest rates could have an impact on home prices this year. Getty Images/iStockphoto If you've been waiting this past year for mortgage rates to drop before buying a home, it's understandable if your patience is wearing thin. Whenever rates have cooled, they haven't stayed down for long. According to FreddieMac data, the average 30-year fixed rate dipped below 6% in late February, then climbed right back to almost 6.5% by early April. The rate then fell slightly before returning to its current level of 6.50%, as of June 8, 2026.Sure, you could keep waiting for mortgage rates to decline, but that raises another concern. What if you wait too long for a rate drop that never materializes and home prices rise in the meantime? You might shave a little off your monthly payment eventually, only to end up paying more for the house itself. Unfortunately, several economic factors are making it harder for mortgage rates to fall significantly. Inflation has been rising, and the Federal Reserve hasn't cut interest rates. Few forecasters expect a steep drop anytime soon. On top of that, affordability is already stretched thin for plenty of households. So where does that leave home prices? If rates stay high through the rest of the year, will prices finally cool or keep climbing upward? We spoke with several mortgage and housing experts to get a better idea of how home p...