My prediction is that Whatcom County’s real estate market is at its lowest point right now. Beginning in the spring of 2008, I feel strongly that the local real estate market will pick up. Whatcom County’s real estate market could have begun its recovery this fall, but it had been held back by negative press both nationally and locally.  

There is clearly a lot of negative press nationally and for good reason. A few months ago the national lending market suffered a hit with the announcement of American Home Mortgage filing bankruptcy. American Home Mortgage was one of the largest sub prime lenders. This led to a big lending scare and caused most lenders to tighten up their lending guidelines.

The other big national headline has been the rise in foreclosures. Many of the adjustable rate mortgages that were taken out in the boom years of 2004 and 2005 will be adjusting to variable rates next year. This will widely affect national real estate market because there is going to be a big increase in inventory.  

Why am I so confident that Whatcom County’s real estate market will recover in spring of 2008? The two biggest factors that will hold back the national real estate market will have a much smaller impact on Whatcom County. The tightening of lending guidelines will reduce the total number of home buyers in Whatcom County, but I don’t feel that will be too damaging to the market. Due to the recent rise of the Canadian Dollar proportionate to the US Dollar, we have been seeing more Canadians choosing to purchase vacation homes across the border in Whatcom County. I think that the Canadian buyers will help offset some of the lending impact.

The second nation real estate factor is the foreclosure issue. It is a fact that the number of foreclosures are going to increase at a national level. It is not a fact that the number of foreclosures are going to increase locally. A large portion of the adjustable rate mortgage holders are people that bought real estate on speculation. Whatcom County’s real estate market is not built from speculation. People chose to live in Whatcom County because they enjoy what the area has to offer.  Local residents enjoy the outdoor life of Whatcom County. Visit the Whatcom County Chamber of Commerce and you will see an amazing list cultural and outdoor activities.

I am not suggesting that Whatcom County’s real estate market is going to boom in 2008 as it did in 2004 and 2005, but I do predict that we will see an increase on home values over the course of the year. The real estate market in Whatcom County is primed for a good year. There are a healthy number of homes on the market and interest rates are under 6%. Now is a great time to buy real estate in Whatcom County.

 

Ryan Martin, e-Pro®, Realtor® - 360-319-0040

 

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