2009 Real Estate Market... is 2009 the year to buy real estate?

My earlier blog post I asked you 4 questions and to email me your thoughts. http://www.century21.ca/patrick.galesloot/Blog/2008_Red_Deer_Real_Estate_Market

• Where do you see house prices going long term?
• How long do you plane to live in that house?
• Should you wait?
• Can you afford to wait to buy based on past price trends?

In follow up I received comments that got me thinking some more about the questions and the responses. The response was a definitive "YES" real estate values will go up long term, but overall people are apprehensive about doing so in a "down" market.

There are different factors influencing your decision to buy and sell.

If you are a first time home buyer the numbers speak for themselves in my opinion. Long-term, home ownership is the way to go. Look at Grandma's house. Grandma paid less for her house than you pay for a car these days in many areas. Grandma is probably mortgage free by now and accumulated hundreds of thousands of dollars along the way. If grandma were to sell today and have a handful of cash that cash, from her personal residence, is tax free. The single largest tax break for most Canadians is that we do not get taxed on capital gains on our personal residence.

So should you be trading up today? Absolutely! Increasing the size of your home and its value should be part of your retirement strategy. When you are 65 and ready to downsize into a 1 bedroom condo and a motor home, you could benefit from the same equity gains as grandma has. Can you afford to do so? It is best to consult your Realtor and your mortgage specialist.

• Do you have enough equity built up to leverage to trade up?

• How much equity do you have today?

You Need a Current Market Evaluation of your home. A great Realtor will help you analyze your situation and advise you of your options.

For the full article visit my Blog at www.patrickgalesloot.com or click here.