Now Could Be the Time to Buy a Home in Stone Harbor!

Now Could Be the Time to Buy a Home in Stone Harbor

The old adage “There’s no time like the present” might not first come to mind when looking at today’s national housing market. But these homespun words of wisdom are quite appropriate when a closer look is given to individual local markets across the country and I’d like to point out these favorable factors that can contribute to making this, for many consumers, a most opportune time to buy a home:

• Inventory is up. When the market is hot, new listings can’t replenish the supply of homes fast enough, and that works in the sellers’ favor. In today’s market, the opposite is true, providing more choices for buyers.

• Sellers are motivated. Homes that in a hot market would have been snapped up in days are now lingering unsold for weeks, even months. Factor in bank-owned properties due to the recent and unfortunate spike in foreclosures and buyers find themselves in an advantageous negotiating position they haven’t enjoyed for years.

• Interest rates are down. Recent cuts in the prime rate by the Federal Reserve have sparked drops in interest rates, which at the end of January were below 6 percent for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage. While banks have tightened lending requirements in the wake of increased loan defaults, homebuyers with few credit problems qualifying to purchase a home they can afford should still have little trouble securing favorable financing terms.

What’s more, a market climate like this especially favors buyers who don’t need to sell an existing property before their purchase, buyers like first-timers and those looking for a second home. This tilts the scale even more towards many buyers.
But regardless of the situation, for every buyer, the key is to work with a real estate professional that knows the local market and specializes in buyer representation – like an agent who has earned the Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR®) designation.

Nancy Alexander is one of more than 50,000 members of the Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council (REBAC) of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, who have attained the Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR®) designation. As the world's largest association of real estate professionals focusing specifically on representing the real estate buyer, REBAC is "The Voice for Buyer Representation," with more than 50,000 active real estate professional members of the organization throughout the world.


How the Stimulus Plan Benefits Homebuyers

According to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 includes elements of NAR’s housing agenda, including:

Homebuyer Tax Credit: The bill provides for an $8,000 tax credit that would be available to first-time home buyers for the purchase of a principal residence on or after Jan. 1, 2009 and before Dec. 1, 2009. The credit does not require repayment.



FHA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Loan Limits: The bill reinstates last year's 2008 loan limits for FHA, Freddie Mac, and Fannie Mae loans. These limits were equal to the greater of 125% of the 2008 local area median home price or $271,050 for FHA and $417,000 for Fannie and Freddie, with an overall maximum cap of $729,750.


The WSJ discusses the data:

Home prices continued their multiyear slide in December, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller home-price indexes, as both the 10-city and 20-city index posted record declines, making 2008 the second-straight full year of declining home prices.

The Sun Belt continues to be hit hardest, and nationally, home prices are at levels similar to late 2003…

Both composite indexes and 13 of the 20 metropolitan areas have reported consecutive record year-over-year declines since December 2007.

As of December, average home prices are down 27% from their mid-2006 peak. The 10-city and 20-city indexes have fallen every month since August 2006, 29 straight.




Game Changer in Housing Numbers

“Housing completions fell a record 24.2% to a record low 776k annualized rate, the first reading below 1.0 million since 1982. The is extremely important because until now builders were still completing homes at a pace too strong for current conditions, preventing inventory levels from falling more rapidly than they recently have. Now that fewer homes are hitting the market for sale, the growing U.S. population will have fewer homes to choose from. This will accelerate the recent decline in home inventories. Have no doubt: this is a game changer for inventories and prices.


“Inventories are already falling … Now that they have fallen; the decline in inventories will accelerate and with it change the dynamic on prices and the whole ball game, basically.”


-- Tony Crescenzi, chief bond market strategist at Miller Tabak & Co., LLC, “Crescenzi: Game Changer In Housing Numbers,” CNBC.com, Feb. 18, 2009.

Affordability and Inventory Make 2009 a Great Time to Buy a Home
According to the National Association of Realtors® housing affordability index, homes were more affordable in December than at any other point since the group started the index in 1970.

In many places it is taking months to sell a home, creating loads of inventory -- from new homes to existing homes to foreclosures. But if you put off a purchase until inventory shrinks substantially, you might not get as good a price. It's nearly impossible to time the exact bottom of the housing market.

Mortgage Applications Soar
Homeowners' applications to refinance existing loans jumped 64.3% on a week-to-week basis, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's weekly survey. Applications for mortgages to purchase homes for the week ended Feb. 13 also rose, up a seasonally adjusted 9.1% from the prior week.

“Mortgage Applications Rose 45.7% Last Week,” by Amy Hoak, MarketWatch, Feb. 18, 2009

Foreclosures Eased in January

Foreclosure filings - default notices, auction sale notices and bank repossessions - were reported on 274,399 U.S. properties during January, down 10% from December, according to RealtyTrac, the online marketer of foreclosed homes. “The extensive foreclosure efforts on the part of lenders and government agencies appear to have impacted the January numbers.”
James Saccacio, RealtyTrac CEO, “Foreclosures Eased in January,” by Les Christie, CNNMoney.com, Feb. 12, 2009.


Are you considering a move ? If you are thinking of buying or selling a home, in Stone Harbor or Avalon, please visit the address for Luxury Real Estate at www.StoneHarborRealtor.com. I'd love to be your Realtor.
It would be my pleasure to help you with your Real Estate needs. Call me ...I Love To talk Real Estate! 609-425-7521