Why first time home buyers should purchase now

Here are four solid reasons to get other there and start looking at your local real estate opportunities now:

1. Don't be fooled, the stock market is going to continue to be turbulent for some time. There were some stock gains in March. In fact, it turned out to be one of the best growth months the market has experienced in the last fifty years, will be returned in the form of profit taking. But there is a very good chance that many of the numbers we are seeing in the financial markets now are an indication of a recovery that will start in earnest in late 2009. If that is indeed the case, many of the bargain basement real estate prices we've seen these past six to twelve months will quickly disappear.

2. Mortgage rates have rarely been better. The rate of a thirty-year fixed-rate mortgage is more attractive today than it has been in the lifetime of just about any potential buyer who is out there looking right now. If recovery starts to heat up market activity, those rates are unlikely to be around come the spring of 2010.

Additionally, for first-time home buyers the government has made an $8,000 tax credit available. That's huge for anyone who owes income tax. And you can bet that tax credit will go away if signs of recovery continue to solidify.

3. If you put on your bargain-hunting hat, there are some incredible deals to be had. Don't look for an $80,000 fixer-upper or foreclosure in Bel Air, CA or other great addresses across America. However, homes which were selling for $250,000 in 2007 are now being offered as foreclosure sales for $65,000. If that's not attractive enough to get your attention, you may have to wait for the next big buying opportunity on Mars, because chances are on this planet a 75% price drop is going to be as good as it gets.

4. It never hurts to look. Getting approved for a loan is indeed far more difficult today than it was two years ago. But if you have some money to put down, good credit, and a good work history, you would be wise to find out what amount of a loan for which you can get pre-qualified, then get aggressive in searching for good buys. Open houses are free, and looking with an agent is also free.

So put yourself out there and see what you like. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

By:  Martin Brown