Virgin blogger here. My first session and probably the first of many blogs to come. I am an Associate Broker and ABR in Dutchess County, NY (Hudson Valley Region - midway between NY City and Albany). These are indeed adventurous times. Right now, our region is a little healthier than in other parts of the country but one of the greatest challenges we have as agents here is reassuring buyers that it really is a good time to buy. We do not have a local news station so our community relies on news from national broadcasts and news sources of nearby major city affiliates. The media does not paint a pretty picture, nor do they emphasize enough that certain markets are worse off than others - all the hype is scaring off ready willing and able home buyers. While consumer confidence is at an all time low and the real estate market is sluggish nationwide, our local economy is pretty healthy. Home prices here actually started adjusting 3-4 years ago - before the sub-prime lending crisis. Our local MLS statistics actually show prices have started to stabilize recently and may even be increasing slightly. I have started to share this information with buyers to help give them reassurance that right now is a great time to buy. Afterall, timing is everything!
Carol,
I have written about us and the media several blogs and the comments left me with a sour taste. Look, if we are logical, then it is better to buy in the worst market, because what we call bad is low prices. SO, if to buy in the slow market, you would do better in the worst of the worst, or in the worst time for the market in certain area. And this is the reason that a lot of people are sitting and waiting, as they hope that the market will go even more down, and they will be able to pick properties for less money.
I was talking to a broker in Canada, and I told him that the Canadian dollar is high against American, and the market here is beautifully slow for Canadian buyers, and he proudly replied that their market is still good. e did not see the funny side, that they would be much better off buying in Florida now than in Toronto, as they could utilize both the benefit of very low prices here, and have another 30% benefit because of the Canadian dollar strength.
Hi Carol,
Welcome to Active Rain! The opportunities to learn and network are incredible here. Best of luck to ya!
-Keith
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