Virginia is seeing its highest mortgage rates in over 20 years

LYNCHBURG, Va. (WSET) — If you're looking to buy a new house, you might want to think twice. Mortgage rates are the highest they have been in over 20 years.

The rate right now is at about 7.1%, according to data released Thursday by Freddie Mac.

Nancy Hubbard, the Dean of the College of Business at the University of Lynchburg said because the inflation rate is so high, the federal reserve is aiming to slow it down using the high mortgage rates.

"What they are trying to do is tamper down the growth so that way we can control inflation," she said.

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These high mortgage rates directly impact Virginians, Hubbard said, and this is because they are less likely to want to buy a new home.

"The number of new house builds has gone down dramatically. So, it means there's still less housing stock available, and people are less likely to move because if they have to take out a new mortgage, the mortgage rate is really high compared to what it was, say 2 to 3 years ago," she said.

However, Hubbard said because of wage increases, people are still spending money, and even with the high inflation rates, the labor market and the economy is strong.