I could totally see more people holding off on buying for a bit longer. Reminds me of when my cousin was house hunting a couple years back—rules tightened up right when she finally had her down payment saved. She panicked and jumped into an alternative lender who promised "easy approval," and let's just say the interest rate was...not pretty. She jokes now that she should've just kept renting and waited it out, because the stress of those payments was no joke. 😅
Honestly, renting a little longer isn't always the worst thing. Gives you extra time to boost your credit score (which I'm always preaching about, lol) and maybe even save a bigger down payment. Plus, it lets you see how the market settles after these rule changes. I'd say if you're feeling uncertain, there's nothing wrong with waiting a bit—better safe than stuck with regrets later on.
Totally agree—jumping into those "easy approval" deals can really backfire. I've seen friends get stuck with brutal interest rates too, and it's not pretty. Honestly, taking a bit more time to polish your credit can make a huge difference. Even a small bump in your score can save thousands over the life of a mortgage...worth the wait imo. Plus, markets usually chill out after these rule shake-ups anyway, so patience might just pay off.
Yeah, spot on with this. A couple years back I jumped into refinancing right after some new rules hit, thinking I'd beat the rush. Ended up with more paperwork headaches and higher closing costs than expected. Lesson learned—waiting a bit for things to settle usually pays off. Also, people underestimate how quickly credit scores can improve if you focus on a few key things...like getting balances down or disputing errors. Patience isn't fun, but it definitely saves money.
Yeah, refinancing right after rule changes is always a gamble—been there myself. Curious though, did you see your credit score jump quickly after disputing errors, or was it more gradual? I've heard mixed stories on that front. Either way, totally agree that patience generally pays off...even if it feels counterintuitive when rates start moving. Good on you for sticking it out through all that paperwork mess, sounds exhausting.
When I disputed an error a couple years back, my score jumped pretty noticeably within about a month or so. But I've heard from friends who saw more of a slow climb over several months—seems like it really depends on the type of error and how quickly the bureaus update. Did you find that certain bureaus responded faster than others? I remember Experian being surprisingly quick, while Equifax took their sweet time...typical, right?
