It sure doesn’t look like a lot of action on this house for sale, does it? That’s the point, right now, if you are motivated, there are three big reasons to be shopping for a house RIGHT NOW, in the dead of winter.
First of your competition is not here. All the people that might be willing to engage you in a bidding war over in March & April so they can close after school gets out and get settled in the school district that YOU want to live in are huddled by the fireplace, shoveling the walk and not out shopping for real estate. They can’t bid you up while they are on the sidelines. Additionally, the sellers who are in the market are serious about selling and there have been far less showings, offers & action on their property. If you are seriously shopping now, you are like an oasis in the desert to these sellers and they want to play let’s make a deal with you.
But rest assured, values and prices are rising. This is a fact. There are arguments, which have been hashed out in detail elsewhere, that we are in the midst of a bit of an artificial boost in prices due to lower rates, foreclosures, etc. Any of this may be true, but the bottom line is that the “bottom of the barrel” prices for homes of late 2009 through 2011 are gone and there unlikely to return to those low levels. In fact, when all the comps from last fall are accounted for and the buyers waiting out the winter come back to the market, we may very well see price increases from here.
Third, rates are going up and the QM (Qualified Mortgage Rule) is now here. You may have heard that over the last couple of years, it has gotten a bit tougher to get a mortgage. On some levels that is true, I wrote about that previously. But here in early 2014, rates are likely to keep rising as the employment situation in our country is statistically improving. Additionally, the Qualified Mortgage Rule is now in effect. It will make loans more challenging to get, if only because it increases the checklist of “stuff” your loan package has to clear before approval.
On the bright side, in addition to a strong negotiating position and the ability to get a great price before the market thaws, you can expect great service from everyone you hire, Realtors, Lenders, Home Inspectors and anyone else involved in your transaction is not swamped right now. They can help you get your home purchase done with a lot less headache than you will see once the market thaws.
So if you are thinking of buying this year, and you are serious, you may not get a better chance than right now. Pick up the phone and find out. You likely can make the “deal of the year” right now!
