A dramatic drop in mortgage interest rates<\/a>, driven by coronavirus fears, has given homebuyers a big boost in purchasing power in recent weeks. At the current mortgage interest rate of 3.2%, a homebuyer with a $2,500 monthly mortgage budget could afford to purchase a home priced $51,250 higher than in March of 2019 when rates were 4.4%. Put another way, as a result of the drop in mortgage interest rates, the monthly payment on a $457,000 home has dropped from $2,500 a year ago to $2,250 today; and a homeowner who could afford a $457,000 home in March of 2019 could afford one at $508,250 today. Although most of the broad economic consequences of the coronavirus, or COVID-19, have been negative, these historically low rates may at least offer some positive news.<\/p>\n \u201cPotential homebuyers now have an extra incentive to buy a home despite all of the economic uncertainty from the coronavirus,\u201d said Redfin chief economist Daryl Fairweather<\/a>. \u201cMany current homeowners now have the option to refinance their mortgages and gain some extra spending cash each month. Low interest rates won\u2019t help with direct impacts of the coronavirus on the economy like declines in tourism and service sector spending, but they will mitigate impacts to housing.\u201d<\/p>\n The interactive mortgage rates chart<\/a> below shows how much you could afford to spend on a home at different mortgage interest rates<\/a>, with each line representing a different monthly payment. You can view or download a static version of this chart here<\/a>.<\/p>\n
![view or download a static version of this chart here<\/a>.<\/p>\n](\"https:\/\/www.redfin.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/mortgage-rates-vs-home-price_Redfin-2020.jpg\"){kind=link}