A couple of months ago, while I was relaxing one night in front of the television (this is ever-so-rare for me these days), my 40" LCD HDTV went out and I was left with nothing but audio. At first I thought it must have been a camera failing on the show, so I changed the channel - and freaked. Nothing. Just sound.
I had a guy come look at it, and he took it back to his repair shop. He called me later that day and said that it would require ordering a part and that it would take about three weeks to get it fixed. Fair enough, although I did begin to suffer high def withdrawal pretty quickly.
We replaced this TV in our media room with a smaller, older television (that we already had) for a few weeks, then I got another call.
The good TV was not fixable.
I decided not to rush out right away and buy a new one, although I did want to have one by the time the NFL season started. I ended up caving during a Memorial Day sale and getting a new one - it was such a good deal!
I knew that if I waited long enough, I could find the deal I really wanted at MY price.
Sound familiar?
I paid $3000 for my television about three years ago. It was pretty cutting-edge back then, and times were good. Why not?
This week, I paid $1199 for a better version and arguably a better brand as well. When I was considering waiting for that "deal", it struck me that this is how most current potential real estate buyers think:
"If I wait long enough, prices will continue to drop and I can get the house of my dreams for pennies on the dollar."
The media feeds this story daily.
However, unlike electronics, homes do not depreciate in value over the long haul. In fact, real estate is probably the most stable long-term investment that you can possibly find.
Waiting on the sidelines may work well when buying the latest technology, but it may backfire with regard to home prices, which are "hyper-local". This means that although the national averages may be down, many areas are experiencing a very healthy market RIGHT NOW.
Don't play the waiting game if you want/need to buy a house. Although deals exist, they may not be the norm in your area.
I have been selling homes in the Austin, Texas area for over 11 years full-time. If you are looking to buy or sell a home in central Texas, call me first. You will not be disappointed.
Jason Crouch, Broker/Owner - Austin Texas Homes, LLC 512-796-7653 (cell)
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