If you are a buyer, now is absolutely the best the time to be in the market. It is a buyers market in almost all areas of the country but interestingly enough most buyers are waiting, they're not buying!
Please don't wait for the media to tell you that the market has reached the bottom. If you do, you'll be six months too late because that is the amount of time it takes for the statistics to show the beginning of a recovery. It is impossible to time the bottom, those that buy at the bottome won't know it until it is passed and they will have achieved that accomplishment as a matter of luck. But the real question is why in the world are you waiting for the bottom anyway?
Imagine you are playing ball with a few other people and suddenly the ball gets loose and everyone on the sidelines jumps in and starts to scramble for the ball. What happens? Most people will instinctively watch the ball and then focus on where they think the ball will land and try to catch it as it bounces back up. The problem is determining what direction the ball will bounce and how high it will go before you can get your hands on it. The smarter ball handlers will keep their eye on the ball, not on where they think it will bounce, they know if they can intercept the ball before it bounces they'll keep the others from getting it by getting to the ball first. It's the one who try to catch the ball on the way down that has a better chance of getting the ball than the person who is waiting for it to bounce. Now think of the best real estate deal as as a ball and the bottom of the market as the floor. The people who are focused on the floor will be waiting for the ball to bounce and will try to catch it quickly on the way back up. The savvy buyer will grab the deal before it hits the floor, taking the opportunity for himself and keeping it from those who were waiting for the deal to hit the bottom.
Now to understand why you get the best deals before the market hits bottom. It's all about seller motivation. When the market has been depressed for sellers as long as this one has, sellers have become acclimated to the fact that it will be hard to sell at any price. They have experienced the pain of the declining market and have developed a mindset that the market is bad. Since they haven't gotten the news yet that the market is recovering, they still maintain the fear that things may continue to get worse. Buyers who live in fear of a declining market are more motivated to negotiate and accept lower offers. If you wait for the news that the market is beginning to recover, then you'll be jumping into a rebounding market along with all the other buyers who have been waiting on the sidelines. Sellers will also get the news and will begin to have hope that their home will sell for a better price and therefore be less motivated to accept lower offers. As hundreds and hundreds of buyers jump into the market, (the buyers who, like you, have been waiting for the bottom) the recover will accelerate even more. You will have missed the mark, prices will start to stabilize, the best deals will get multiple offers and sell above list price and thus the market will slowly begin to gain a small increase in value.
Oh, yes, don't forget to add into the mix the fact that interest rates are still at historic lows but will probably not stay there for long. The Federal Government is already showing signs of increasing interest rates due to the threat of inflation caused by higher fuel costs. Talk to some lenders, they will show you the figures; a home that sells for $100,000 with a 6% mortgage will have a lower monthly payment than the home that sells for $95,000 with a 8% mortgage. If you're thinking of buying, don't wait, the time to buy is now.
I would love you to be one of the few homeowners who takes my advice and looks back four years from now and is amazed by the incredible deal you got on you home back in the summer of 2008!
In the coastal areas of Southwest Florida we have some of the best buying opportunities in Florida's history and savvy buyers are beginning to take advantage of some tremendous values. If you're waiting, don't. Call me for a list of some great property values.
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