On the other hand, Lereah believes we're entering an era of long-term,stable low rates which could drop even lower than they are today andstaythere for the next four to five years. Low interest rates could continueto propel homeownership in this country even during a mild recessions,industry observers believe. In the next ten years, consumers will demand that home loans be custom-tailored, much the way that identical track housing has now gone the wayof the Edsel. In addition, as lenders become more skilled at evaluatingrisk, consumers will enjoy a wider variety of choices, including lendingratios that are stretched beyond where they are today, and zero downpayment loans. The numbers of real estate agents and mortgage lenders are starting toshrink, as the real estate industry consolidates.
Big banks arepurchasingeach other, and consolidating their empires under one structure.
Thatmeans some people will have to find new jobs. Companies such as Microsoft's HomeAdvisor, HomeShark, andQuickenMortgagegive consumers the ability save time and get reasonably, if not thecheapest loan prices. Unless these mortgage brokers find a way to createnew business, either online or off, some economists estimate up to halfofthem may disappear. Ten years ago, the Internet as we know it didn't exist. Five years ago,you could hardly find good information.