East Bay Home Front

The Perfect Storm!

 

There has never been a better time to buy a house. There will never be a better time to buy a house. 

That is, unless you can wait another 40 years. 

Rarely do we have this confluence of events. Interest rates below 5%. Prices 20 to 50% below what they were 2 years before. A tax credit of $8,000 for first time buyers. 

If you have even an inkling of optimism, it's a phenomenal time to buy your first house ... or sell your house and move up, or buy investment property. When you buy now, you build equity automatically because you're buying at the low. 

We're bumping along the bottom, which may continue for the rest of the year. After which, most economists expect home prices in this area to slowly return to more normal levels. At the same time, interest rates will return to their normal levels, or possibly higher. So if there is a right time, it's right now. 

If you'd like to get started on taking advantage of this perfect storm, just give me a call in my office: 510-273-9318!
 

Santa's Been Here! Mortgage Rates Drop To Lowest in Almost 40 Years.

Happy New Year! Yes, interest rates on a 30-year fixed loan below $417,000 are now 1.3 points lower than they were 3 months ago, almost a point lower than a year ago, and are now hovering around 5%! Conforming jumbo loans (up to $650,500) are hovering a little above 5.5%. 

At the risk of sounding over exuberant, this could be a once in a lifetime opportunity! Especially if you're interested in buying a first home, moving up or to a different neighborhood, or buying investment property. Now I can hear the "Ya buts" coming. Will the real estate prices go lower? If you live in Antioch, probably. If you live in the near East Bay, probably not. Here's why. Right now, there are bank owned houses priced below market that are getting bid up by $30,000 to $50,000 or more. On my listings of the last couple months, most have gotten multiple offers. Add to that, the new administration is definitely planning a stimulus package for housing. It would not surprise me to see some sort of moratorium or curtailment of foreclosures. Further, prices would have to fall another 10% to match the interest rate reduction. 

So the time to step in is now. Before interest rates go up, and prices start to go up. You can buy great starter homes for around $200,000 now. You can get a house in a great neighborhood priced 25% below what is was 3-4 years ago. If you'd like to take advantage of the recovery, just call me in my office: 510-273-9318. In any case, it's always good to hear from you...or any of your neighbors, friends or co-workers!