Harleysville-Lansdale Real Estate and More

Real estate agents are always saying BUY, BUY, BUY!  Or is it SELL, SELL, SELL?  Well, either way, this is not a “boy who cried wolf” scenario, NOW really is an excellent time to buy a house.  And when I say now, I mean the 4th quarter of 2011.

Interest rates are at an all-time low.  Yes, they have been relatively low for several years now, and everyone warns that they will go up at some point (and eventually they will).  But rates have truly hit all-time lows with a 30-year conventional mortgage at 4.0% (4.053% APR) and an FHA 30-year mortgage at 3.75% (4.551% APR).

This is from an email we received last week from one of our mortgage brokers, “As a result of Bernanke’s “Twist” strategy announced yesterday by the Federal Reserve, rates are falling well below anything I’ve dreamed of in my 36 years in the business.”

Home prices are near 2003 levels.  No one really knows when the bottom of a market has hit.  That is best judged in the rear view mirror when prices have already rebounded.  But we can say with certainty that there are some really great deals out there in the housing market right now.  Even in this market, the great deals don’t last.  These particular homes often sell within a day or two of going on the market and occasionally we’ll still see multiple offers.

4th quarter of the year favors buyers.  Traditionally, the best time for a seller to sell a house is the spring and early summertime.  The market is primarily driven by families who don’t want to move mid-school year. 

When it gets late in the calendar year, sellers who haven’t sold yet become more anxious about not wanting to go through another winter.  Many want to move to warmer locations or have already purchased their next home and don’t want to incur the costs of heating and maintaining two homes throughout the ice and snow of winter. 

Sellers typically do one of two things by Thanksgiving, 1) they often take their home off the market with the intent to try again the following year, or 2) they get pretty serious about selling and either drop their price or become more open to negotiating an offer.  Either way, a mid-November offer is generally a pretty welcome sight to a seller.

Mortgage products still exist where a buyer can put little money down.  FHA, VA, and USDA loans allow a buyer to put down as little as 3.5% for FHA while VA and USDA loans allow a buyer to put no money down.  Your credit score is still key, but there are great mortgage products out there that will allow a buyer to lock into a terrific 30-year rate with no fear of that rate adjusting.  Many mortgage payments today are less than rents for comparable homes.

Another buyer benefit of FHA, VA or USDA loans is that they set minimum standards for property condition often necessitating certain repairs to be completed by the seller.  While these repairs can be a serious thorn in the sides of sellers and their agents, it does help protect you as a buyer.

Still not convinced?  Warren Buffet has said that buying his house was the 3rd best investment he has ever made. What won out in the #1 and #2 spots? The ring he bought his 1st wife and then the ring he bought his 2nd wife after his 1st wife’s death. (Even Buffett knows that a happy wife is a happy life.)

Buffett still lives in the same home he purchased in 1958 in Omaha, Nebraska. In a letter to shareholders at Berkshire Hathaway, Inc. dated February 26, 2011, Buffett wrote, “For the $31,500 I paid for our house, my family and I gained 52 years of terrific memories with more to come.” Buffett went on to say, “A housing recovery will probably begin within a year or so. In any event, it is certain to occur at some point.”

What are you waiting for?  The moons have aligned pretty well for buyers.  If you have been considering buying a home, we would welcome the opportunity to walk you through the process and run the numbers for whether or not it makes sense for YOU right NOW.

Contact Scott Loper, Associate Broker, Realtor®, RE/MAX Realty Group at 215-513-1333 for help buying or selling a home in Lansdale, Harleysville, Hatfield, Souderton, Skippack, Collegeville, North Wales and the surrounding areas of Montgomery County of Pennsylvania. To Search for Homes For Sale in Montgomery County Click Here.

Why I Would BUY a House Right NOW - Copyright © 2011, The Scott Loper Team, All rights reserved.