The Fed Raised Rates. Should You Still Sell Your House?

By Kevin Yoder

Kevin Yoder launched his real estate career in 2002 and has been performing in the top 1% of agents worldwide for over two decades.

Two percentages should not make a six-figure decision for you. That’s the trap many West Michigan homeowners face right now. The Fed raised its benchmark rate last Wednesday for the first time since 2023; the average 30-year mortgage is around 6.95%, and anyone with a 3 or 4% loan does the same quick math: my rate is half of today’s, so I’m staying put. It’s an understandable reflex, and it’s the wrong way to decide.

Your low rate is a real asset, which is exactly why it’s easy to overvalue. A cheap mortgage can be a good reason to stay. It can also quietly subsidize a house that no longer fits your finances, your family, or the life you’re trying to build. The rate tells you what your loan costs. It says nothing about whether the house is still right, and most people skip that second question.

So run the real cost of moving before you rule it out. Here’s where the math goes wrong: people compare their current rate to today’s rate, see the gap, and stop. But the rate is one input, not the whole calculation. What matters is what you’d net and owe after a move: what the home sells for, what’s left on the loan, your selling costs, and the equity you carry forward. Put that against the full payment on the next place, mortgage, taxes, insurance, and any dues, and you have the real difference. Sometimes it confirms the move is too far a stretch. Just as often, your equity makes the next home more reachable than the rate gap suggested. An online calculator can’t tell you that, but a seller’s net sheet and real lending numbers can.

Then put a price on staying, because staying is never free. Sometimes it costs almost nothing, and staying wins. But a low rate can also mask what the wrong house costs you: the repairs you keep deferring, the space you’ve outgrown, the stairs, the commute, the distance from family, the move you know is coming. None of that disappears because your mortgage is cheap. Ask what another two or three years here actually costs you, not just in dollars, but in time, upkeep, and quality of life. A low rate is an asset when it serves your life, and a liability when it’s the only reason you’re still there.

Whatever you’re considering, make sure it works at today’s rate, not one you’re hoping for. Never make a move that only pencils out if you refinance six months from now. If rates fall, refinancing becomes upside, but upside can’t be the plan. The next home has to be sustainable at the payment you’d sign for today. If it isn’t, that’s not a dead end. It’s a signal to adjust: a different target price, more equity forward, a different sequence for selling and buying, or waiting until the numbers are stronger.

Here’s why the full picture matters. Last month I sat down with a couple, empty nesters in a 4,500-square-foot home at a 3% rate. On paper, staying was obvious. Then they ran everything - the utilities, the lawn care, the upkeep on all that space - and realized they were using maybe 1,500 square feet of it. They felt like two ships passing in the night. Once they weighed all of it, not just 3% against 6.95%, the decision looked completely different than the rate alone suggested.

That’s the whole point. The right answer isn’t always sell, and it isn’t always stay. It’s the one your complete financial picture and the life you want point to.

If you own a West Michigan home and your low rate has you wondering whether a move is even possible, request a Move or Stay Strategy Review, and we’ll estimate your equity, examine the next payment, evaluate timing, and tell you whether moving makes sense or staying leaves you stronger. Call or text us at 616-741-3582, email us at kevin@soldbyyoder.com, or visit yoderrealestate.com.

Your mortgage rate matters. But the rate isn’t the decision. The complete plan is.