CNN Money Expert Says it is a Good Time to Buy a House
Ran across this and since we so rarely see optimistic news coming from the media I wanted to pass it along.
The best time to buy a home
No one knows when we’ll reach a bottom, but you can get a great bargain, if you shop around.
Questions: Given all the foreclosures and other problems in the housing market and the economy, do you think this is a good time for someone to buy a house? Or would I be better off waiting for the housing market to recover? —Mari, San Francisco
Answers: If you’re asking me to predict when the housing market will hit bottom and when prices are likely to start climbing again, I’m sorry, but I can’t help you. My housing crystal ball is on the blink.
I can tell you, though, that at this point we’re still looking at one bleak house scenario.
If anything, the latest price statistics suggest that the market is still falling. The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller Home Price Index for 20 large metropolitan areas was down 16.6% in August compared to its level a year ago. That’s more than the index was down for the year ending in July (16.3%) and in June (15.9%). National Association of Realtor stats for September also show a decline.
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But I don’t think all this necessarily means that you should put off buying until certain prices have bottomed out, assuming you’re planning to live in your house for, say, at least five years as opposed to flipping it.
Why? Well, for one thing I don’t think it’s possible to time the housing market any more than it is to time the stock market. Sure, you might be able to get a somewhat better deal by postponing your purchase. On the other hand, it’s unrealistic to think that you’re going to be able to catch the market just as prices are ready to rebound.
Buying a house isn’t something you can do at a moment’s notice. You’ve got to find the house you really want, settle on a price and get your financing. Your chances of timing all this to coincide with the market trough - even if you could call it - are pretty much nil. Besides, even when prices do eventually start to rise, no one knows how quickly (or slowly) they’ll climb.
Read the rest of the article here.
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- Published:
- 11.07.08 / 11pm
- Category:
- Signs of the Times
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- time to buy
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