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Wait.
If many speculators (Not realtors) are correct, we are still in a major correction of the real estate market.
Lets say that you buy a house right now for 300K.
You put 30,000 down.
If the real estate market falls another 10 or 15 or even as high as another 25%, as some think it may, then you will be upside in your mortgage(owing more than it is worth)...not a good place to be.
We have the same thinking hat on(again). There is absolutely NO hurry to run out and buy NOW. With oil at 103 bucks and gasoline rising and doomsday forecast daily I would suspect the real estate market that rose about 100 percent in 5 years not to long ago will continue to drop. How much who knows. I for one would take a bet today that if you bought say this week your house would be worth less in three to 4 months and probably alot longer. The stock market is dropping also so people that maybe had a little money there just lost part of the down payment. Just heard banks AGAIN are tightening loans practices(only if they did that 4 or 5 years ago we wouldn't be having this chat now). Realtors were saying just wait to the interest rates drop. They did 1 1/4 percent in only 11 days. Guess what it got worse. Your call but I would be only a serious looker at the present moment. When prices level off from dropping it won't occur overnight it will take months maybe years for peoples mentality that yes you can go bankrupt with a home purchase as many Americans are finding out. I guess the NAR will put out a contract on me now because all you hear from them is to buy, buy, buy. JM
Only you can make the decision if it's the best time for you to purchase.There are houses that are selling. New Jersey has good demand for housing. The Spring market is usually the hottest. In the late summer things slow down, then after Thanksgiving it is even slower. It may be worth waiting till fall to purchase, but if the right house pops up be ready to make a deal. Like wiley said, consentrate on looking for sellers that are serious to sell, Know what your looking for, and put in offers. Where are you looking to purchase?
We have the same thinking hat on(again). There is absolutely NO hurry to run out and buy NOW. With oil at 103 bucks and gasoline rising and doomsday forecast daily I would suspect the real estate market that rose about 100 percent in 5 years not to long ago will continue to drop. How much who knows. I for one would take a bet today that if you bought say this week your house would be worth less in three to 4 months and probably alot longer. The stock market is dropping also so people that maybe had a little money there just lost part of the down payment. Just heard banks AGAIN are tightening loans practices(only if they did that 4 or 5 years ago we wouldn't be having this chat now). Realtors were saying just wait to the interest rates drop. They did 1 1/4 percent in only 11 days. Guess what it got worse. Your call but I would be only a serious looker at the present moment. When prices level off from dropping it won't occur overnight it will take months maybe years for peoples mentality that yes you can go bankrupt with a home purchase as many Americans are finding out. I guess the NAR will put out a contract on me now because all you hear from them is to buy, buy, buy. JM
In the meantime, keep dropping your hard earned dollars into that apartment. If you are buying so that you can say "I'm a homeowner" and not so that you can say "If I sell in 2 years, how much will I make" - it's a good time. Besides, in my business, we are the last to feel the effects of a downed housing market and the first to feel it start to rise again...we are getting busy again which means homes are starting to sell folks!
Play with some calculators and see how many of your hard earned dollars you might be dropping into interest, taxes, and possibly PMI (if you put down less than 20%) and then compare that to your rent. That's the real calculation. Most of your mortgage payment doesn't go into equity into you home, especially in the early years, and if home prices are dropping you could find yourself owing more than your home is worth unless you make a smart buy.
Take your time. Do your homework. Stay within your means. Keep an eye on the public schools. Did I mention it's a buyer's market?
Sorry, but I do not believe the "I see the light at the end of the tunnel" rhetoric that many of you believe in.
How can anyone here NOT believe that if housing prices go down any further that your down payment will not be money thrown out the window. A 10, 15 or 20% downpayment could be washed away if real estate prices fall even more, as many people (non-realtors) believe.
Also, the other night CNN reported that "orders" for new homes still have not picked up. "Orders" for new homes will be a sign of a turn.
The people that are selling their houses and some realtors are the ones saying it's picking up it's turning around and so on. I beg to differ the numbers in the last several months are the worst in decades and NO ONE has seen a turn around yet to justify buying NOW. Ask yourself a question if we are heading into a full blown recession and oil is over 100 bucks a barrel and you have the chance to lose 5,10,15 percent on a house you do the math. If I buy a house at 500K and it loses 10 percent in a year thats 50 thousand folks. Now add in the property taxes, interest, homeowners insurance, closing costs, attorney fees, you just kissed 75K away. It's a great time to rent and watch because it will not turn around tomorrow. Any way it's your money not mine.
And you shouldn't believe it because there is no light to be found. Robert Toll, CEO of Toll Brothers, confirmed there is no pick-up going on in the region and Spring will stink again. Inventories are way too high, some modest improvement in recent months only because sellers have been pulling off the market over the winter months. Homebuilder stocks, which rallied substantially this year in anticipation of Spring, are now getting crushed once again. Cancellation rates and foreclosures are very high and price declines are accelerating.
But on the positive side - NJ was very strong but not one of the top markets nationally in terms of price appreciation so we have less bubble to burst, as people mentioned, we are sandwiched between two major cities and demand is always there with high income. Anytime you have lots of inventory and negotiating ability, it is a good time to buy. Remember, real estate is a LOCAL market.
For existing homeowners, now is also an excellent time to renovate or build an addition. I am currently adding on a very nice master bath at $220 square foot, the contractor, who is exceptional, can do the job with no lead time other than permits and can complete it in roughly 3-4 weeks. I would never get this pricing or service 3 years ago and in town center of Moorestown it will add a lot of value to my house.
Last edited by MoorestownResident; 03-04-2008 at 05:58 PM..
Sorry, but I do not believe the "I see the light at the end of the tunnel" rhetoric that many of you believe in.
How can anyone here NOT believe that if housing prices go down any further that your down payment will not be money thrown out the window. A 10, 15 or 20% downpayment could be washed away if real estate prices fall even more, as many people (non-realtors) believe.
Also, the other night CNN reported that "orders" for new homes still have not picked up. "Orders" for new homes will be a sign of a turn.
I'm not looking for a light at the end of the tunnel. If you find a home thats a good price to start, negotiate for something even better, and then post-inspection, negotiate for some more...
You're likely in a good position. Not to profit in a year or so, but if you intend to live in your home for a few years, its likely that you'll stand to gain equity.
And you shouldn't believe it because there is no light to be found. Robert Toll, CEO of Toll Brothers, confirmed there is no pick-up going on in the region and Spring will stink again. Inventories are way too high, some modest improvement in recent months only because sellers have been pulling off the market over the winter months. Homebuilder stocks, which rallied substantially this year in anticipation of Spring, are now getting crushed once again. Cancellation rates and foreclosures are very high and price declines are accelerating.
But on the positive side - NJ was very strong but not one of the top markets nationally in terms of price appreciation so we have less bubble to burst, as people mentioned, we are sandwiched between two major cities and demand is always there with high income. Anytime you have lots of inventory and negotiating ability, it is a good time to buy. Remember, real estate is a LOCAL market.
For existing homeowners, now is also an excellent time to renovate or build an addition. I am currently adding on a very nice master bath at $220 square foot, the contractor, who is exceptional, can do the job with no lead time other than permits and can complete it in roughly 3-4 weeks. I would never get this pricing or service 3 years ago and in town center of Moorestown it will add a lot of value to my house.
You can't use Toll Brothers as an example..they are higher end homes! They will be the last to feel the market move. It will be a trickle up recovery - under 200k..moving the sellers to the under 400k..moving the sellers to the 500 plus category. Toll Brothers will suffer this year unless they start building lower end homes.
All real estate is local? Here's an article I just read from a local NJ small newspaper, Courier News Online. Bottom line? Anyone considering buying can take their time, shop around, and be wise about not stretching beyond their means. It's a buyer's market.
""The pace of New Jersey home sales sank to a four-year low in January, raising serious questions about what's ahead for the spring housing market," the Otteau Valuation Group, an East Brunswick real estate consulting firm, stated in a report last week ....
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Last edited by scirocco22; 03-05-2008 at 08:48 AM..
Reason: copyright issues
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Ask yourself a question if we are heading into a full blown recession and oil is over 100 bucks a barrel and you have the chance to lose 5,10,15 percent on a house you do the math. If I buy a house at 500K and it loses 10 percent in a year thats 50 thousand folks. Now add in the property taxes, interest, homeowners insurance, closing costs, attorney fees, you just kissed 75K away. It's a great time to rent and watch because it will not turn around tomorrow. Any way it's your money not mine.
