August 4, 2016. We’re past the year’s halfway mark and well into the 3rd quarter of a year in transition. For most of 2016, buyers gained the negotiating edge, but while prices are holding, transaction volume and velocity are down. Interest rates have hovered at historic lows for the better part of 8 years, and as of this writing, we’re at an all time average low of 3.44% on a 30-year fixed product. Rates are expected to inch up nominally in December after the US presidential election, though the change, at least initially, is unlikely to make much of a difference in residential real estate.