To Buy or Not to Buy, that is the question….

I come across this question all of the time, especially in this market. Many people I feel want to take advantage of the market, but they’re just not sure if NOW is the time or not. When is the perfect time to buy? We will only really know that once prices start going back up, then everyone will say “that was the time to do it.” However at that point, it will be too late. The market will have started to recover. There are signs pointing to recovery, but I think there is still a ways to go. Does that mean that buyers should sit back and just wait? I don’t think so. There are too many good incentives to let this market pass you buy.

Will home prices get better? Maybe, but maybe they won’t. If you read my last blog post you could see that home prices in Cincinnati dropped 13% on average when compared to last year. And as I mentioned in that post, as inventory shrinks and more demand is created, prices will start to climb back up. Get the prices now while we KNOW they are low. It’s the law of supply and demand.

Another great incentive are the low mortgage rates we are seeing right now. I don’t think that today’s first time home buyer really appreciates the low rates we’ve got going right now. They will all be in for a shock when they go to sell 5 years from now and may have to pay quite a bit more. Today’s rates, although they fluctuate a lot, they are still historically low, generally between 5-6%. Once everything starts to bounce back you can pretty much kiss these sweet deals good bye…

If you’re a first time home buyer you may want to finally jump on the home buying band wagon. Your 8k tax incentive is up Nov 30, 2009. That means you have to CLOSE by Nov 30. The clock is ticking my friends… who is eligible? Anyone who hasn’t owned a home in the past 3 years if they meet income limits single buyers, $75,000 a year; married couples $150,000. The credit decreases for single buyers earning between $75,000 and $95,000, and between $150,000 and $170,000 for home buyers filing jointly.

Call me today if you have any questions on purchasing a home in Cincinnati! I’d love to help.<-->