Right now buyers are out there looking for bargains in this market. Many buyers are hesitant and are waiting for the bottom to occur.  Speaking from experience most people ending up missing the bottom and either catch it right before or right after it has occurred. In my area of Modesto, I have seen a huge increase in sales in just recent days. Usually this time of year is dead up until March or April, but there is a lot of people out there that are looking for the great deals that are in this market.

The current inventory, according to the Modesto Bee, is "thirteen months", which means that there are a lot of good deals out there.

However be careful for traps. Many bank-owned properties can be acquired for discounted prices, but there can be lots of hidden damages that are in the property.

Overall though, most homes are priced and staged well to sell and would be wonderful assets for people to acquire the American Dream. Getting a loan is a little bit more difficult, but if you have good credit then you are going to be in position to own a home.

There are a few things I would do before you decide to work with a Realtor.

1.  Get pre-approved for a loan.  Pre-qualified does not cut it with many places, they actually want you to be pre-approved.

2.  Shop around.  Find a Realtor or Agent that you are comfortable with and will not push you into a home that you are not comfortable with the payments.

3.  Look around and find the neighborhood that suits you best.

4.  Find a Realtor that will take most of the stress out of the home buying process and will find out the answers to questions.  Anyone that claims to know all the answers usually doesn't. 

Good luck in your home buying search.  Remember right now is an excellent time to buy a home in Modesto or in most parts of the country.

Matthew Zgonc
www.buysellmodesto.com