Vancouver / Camas
Washington Real Estate "Blue Moon" Season to Move Up
an Opinion by ClarkCountyExpert.com
Vancouver, Camas and Felida
Washington real estate news, as in other parts of the country finds
the local media reporting fear and angst in the real estate industry.
However, in our opinion this is a once in a "Blue Moon" season to
make one of the best real estate moves...
According
to Wikipedia, from the Maine
Farmers Almanac a
Blue Moon is an infrequent but periodic event where instead of
the typical 3 Full Moons in a Calendar quarter, there are 4 Full
Moons. The third full moon in a four-full-moon quarter is
tagged as the "Blue Moon." In 2007 there was a Blue Moon on
May 31st. For real estate in Vancouver / Camas, Washington, we
think the Blue Moon is right now. Here's why:
In most Vancouver and Camas, Washington neighborhoods, homes that
are for sale near the median sales price are seeing increasing
prices, while selling at the more typical 3 to 4 months time-frame.
For home owners in the area's median price range, we see a
tremendous opportunity to "Move Up" by selling your existing home
and purchasing a larger one. Industry studies show that most
upward moves average about a 50% increase in home price. For
example: a home-owner sells their $300,000 home and will typically
move up to a $450,000 home.
In today's market homes in the $400,000 to $500,000 are temporarily
seeing slow sales, punctuated by price reductions and a higher than
normal number of homes on the market. Thus, benefit one and
two to the Upward Movers are: 1) the $450,000 homes are
selling closer to $400,000, generating a real savings to the Upward
Movers; and 2) there are more homes to choose from!
A third (3) benefit to the Upward Movers are the great mortgage
interest rates available today combined with the signals from the
Federal Reserve last week to move towards equally or better interest
rates in the overall US Economy including mortgages in the near
term. The combined effect of reasons one and three will result
in lower mortgage payments for the new home.
A fourth (4) reason is the improved ability to sell a home in the
area's median price range. The typical buyer pool for homes in
the median price range are Upward Movers selling a home in the
$200,000 price range; as well as Downward Movers -- folks who no
longer need or want the larger more expensive homes and are
purchasing a median-price home. In today's market we are also
seeing a fair amount of "Lateral Movers" who may be purchasers
moving into our area and deciding to purchase at the median price
range instead of moving up themselves.
The fifth (5) and final reason we see this as a Blue Moon time for
most Upward Movers is the soft-prices in the $400,000 to $500,000
range are temporary, and will begin to firm up and rise again as
more and more Upward Movers figure out this is a great time to make
that upward move!
In summary, here's why we see this as a great time for many Upward
Movers:
1) soft prices in the $400,000 to $500,000 price range;
2) relatively more homes to choose from in this price range;
3) excellent mortgage rates should result in lower than expected
monthly payments;
4) relatively strong demand for the area's median priced homes is a
positive to sell your existing home;
5) items 1, 2 (especially 1) are temporary conditions.
If you or someone you know is thinking about being an Upward Mover,
please review this opinion and ask yourself: "Why Wait?"
Feel free to contact us with any questions you
may have regarding this opinion.
Kathryn Alexander & John Slocum, Alexander
∞ Slocum Real Estate Team
♦ Disclaimer: The information in
this opinion
is from reliable sources but not guaranteed. Please work with
a real estate professional you know and trust to ensure the best results in your home
search.
Vancouver Washington Real Estate and Home Information Resource for home owners,
home sellers and home buyers in Vancouver Washington. We also cover other Clark County Washington areas including
Camas, Battle Ground, Ridgefield, Brush Prairie, La Center and Washougal.
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