Homebuyers Can Beat the Headline Mortgage Rate by Shopping, Saving and Strengthening Credit
Realtor.com, a subsidiary of News Corp (Nasdaq: NWSA), published a research report finding that actual mortgage rates vary widely around headline rates, with the middle 80% of borrowers spanning 93 basis points worth roughly $28,400 in buying power. The analysis of more than 1.35 million purchase loans from 2023-2025 shows credit-score thresholds (700 and 720) and lender shopping as the biggest levers, with competitive lender shopping alone worth about 19 basis points.
Key figures
- Loans analyzed
- 1351302
- Median rate range bps
- 48
- Buying power difference
- $28,400
- Retail lender spread bps
- 19
- Rate spread middle 80pct bps
- 93
- Credit threshold improvement bps
- 5.5
AI analysis
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