The answer in my opinion is no. If you are buying when the market is down- which is now then you will have done what everyone wants to do buy low and then when the market comes back in several years you will sell higher! The following post is from Atlanta Real Esate Forum and I think they have hit all the points that are so important for buyer and sellers to realize right now. If you know someone who is “thinking” about buying please share this blog with them and tell them to call me- 404-246-5037. I am happy to discuss what they should do!
From Atlanta Real Eastat Forum: Perfect timing of any market is nearly impossible. We are bombarded with news about whether we have reached the bottom of the financial markets, housing, cars, etc. Very few people have correctly called the bottom of any market until after that market has started to recover. Many factors go into a new home buying decision; price, location, interest rates, taxes, schools, quality, community, etc. With that said the number one question new home buyers are asking when they visit a community is; is now the time to buy? The simple answer is that this is most likely one of the best times in history to purchase a new home. Now we need to look at why.
The majority of the Atlanta housing market did not experience the huge appreciation in prices that many parts of the country experienced. The national press has not done a very good job about segmenting the thousands of sub-markets around the country. Since the huge appreciation did not occur prices did not have far to fall. New home builders are now selling finished homes at or below cost. As the inventory of these homes decreases the prices will slowly rise. Currently the inventory of finished new homes is falling fast due to the lack of new construction.
Interest rates are another major factor in home affordability. 30-year mortgage rates have been near or below 5% for several weeks, a level that has rarely been seen for long-term loans. This cheap money along with the current tax incentive from the federal government make new home affordability at one of the best levels in history. We may see an improvement to the $7,500 tax credit for new home buyers in the upcoming stimulus package, but most likely it will be retro active similar to the last one that was done.
The bottom line is that late 2008 and early 2009 will likely go in the history books as one of the best times in our lifetime to purchase a new home. If you have a home to sell, price it right; if you have credit issues, work to repair your credit; if you are renting, consider buying.
