You missed the tax credit! Is it too late to buy a house?

OK, Mr. or Ms. Buyer! You either waited too long to house-hunt or you learned you had some credit issues to resolve before you could qualify for a loan. Is it too late to get a good buy on a house? Did you miss out on a great deal? The answer is ABSOLUTELY NOT!

Interest rates are still low. Some of the larger franchises (Coldwell Banker included) are launching creative ways to extend benefits for a longer time. In our market, we ended the first quarter with a little more than nine months of inventory on hand. That means it is still very much a buyer's market. Closing cost assistance can usually be negotiated with a good offer. In fact, during the tax credit, we often lamented that if we could find a way to get the tax credit to the closing table, it would be of more benefit. With the Coldwell Banker program, agents are trying to negotiate the closing costs or down payment assistance up to $8,000 (if allowed by the buyer's loan program) with the sellers at the time of listing. No negotiations are then necessary when writing the offer, and the money comes to the closing table. (Time constraints apply.) Even if this is not in place, however, negotiations on price and assistance with closing costs and pre-paids are still possible.

You WILL miss out on a good deal if you wait until interest rates rise--whenever that will be. Just as the markets rise or fall on a cyclical basis, interest rates will eventually rise. You will be kicking yourself then.

Do yourself a favor if you are thinking of buying. Call your REALTOR® today.