Good time to buy a home or investment real estate!

In today’s apparent shaky economy there are a lot of rumors in the real estate market advising now isn’t a good time to buy until our economy experiences a turn around. Like many types of advice based on fear, this one could not be less true. Many people are discovering that now is the perfect time to buy or sell real estate, for a variety of reasons.

Home prices are low. Mortgage rates are low. There is a large inventory to choose from. Seller’s are willing to negotiate.

In addition to normal home sales that are typical in any market, today potential buyers may find opportunities to get a good deal in foreclosure properties or in short sales. Short sales require approval from the lender who holds the mortgage on the seller's property, but with declining home values more lenders are open to taking less in a resale price than the home is worth.

Real estate agents can help guide you through the process of finding and purchasing a home.

The number of foreclosures that have occurred in recent years which have depressed home values means that there are many more properties to choose from, and the prices are better than they have been for years. The market, however, has not yet recovered, meaning that there is a possibility that values could decrease more before things pick up if there is another big wave of foreclosures that hit the market.

Still, when things turn around those values will increase, and buyers today will likely be positioning themselves well for when the market returns.

Owning a home is still very much the American dream. For years lenders were not as careful as they needed to be in determining borrowers' ability to repay loans, and we are suffering the results of that now. But as things turn around, and the housing market returns, many opportunities exist for people to find their dream home at a price that hasn't been seen for years.

Courtesy of:

http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/good-time-now-to-buy-a-home/article_0a90db6e-c1c2-11e0-ab33-001cc4c03286.html

Good Resources:

Pending Sales

http://www.realtor.org/research/research/phsdata

Return on Investment (Prices)

http://www.standardandpoors.com/home/en/us

Return on Investment (Stocks)

http://money.msn.com/

Mortgage Rates

http://www.freddiemac.com/pmms/

NPR

http://m.npr.org/news/Business/137029194

CBS Money Watch

http://moneywatch.bnet.com/economic-news/feature/real-estate-why-the-time-to-buy-is-now/6244377/

JP Morgan

https://mm.jpmorgan.com/stp/t/c.do?i=2312-1F54&u=a_p*d_607595.pdf*h_-2gh4fcf

Macro Markets

http://www.macromarkets.com/real-estate/home-price-survey.asp

HUD’s Donovan

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/07/03/obamas-housing-chief-nows-the-time-to-buy/

Foreclosure Delays

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/foreclosure-backlogs-taking-longer-toprocess/2011/06/30/AGuWdksH_graphic.html