There has been a surge in buyer interest this year and simple
economics would tell you that with more demand equals an increase in price. Home prices have been starting to rise as
well as interest rates at a slowly but surely speed. According to Realtor.com, home prices in the
Los Angeles area has risen 6.43% from a year ago. The unfortunate reality is that many buyers
were hesitant to buy before but now that everyone is interested in
homeownership, everyone is trying to get in on it. People either go to where the money is, or
where the money will be. Which one are
you?
Buyers Want a Bargain? Here's Their Chance!
DAILY REAL ESTATE
NEWS | TUESDAY, AUGUST 21, 2012
For home buyers who
are looking for a chance to buy low, they may not want to drag their feet too
much longer.
“Home prices have
probably bottomed in most markets,” David Crowe, chief economist at the
National Association of Home Builders, said in an NBC News-hosted Web chat with
online visitors last week. “Mortgage rates are not likely to go down much
further and will eventually rise as the economy recovers. Home builders are
hungry and while you will still have to pay a fair price, you may not get a better
bargain than now before all the rest of the demand comes back.”
However, the best
bargains will largely depend on where you’re at, Crowe says.
“House prices are
rising in some markets, notably Texas ... In a few markets that were severely
damaged by the recent Great Recession, prices may continue downward for another
six to ten months,” Crowe says.
Crowe says one hurdle
that may slow the recovery is the inability for some home buyers to still not
be able to qualify for financing due to banks’ tightened underwriting
conditions in the last few years.
But in places where
the inventory of distressed homes is decreasing and demand is growing because
of an improving employment picture, “housing is beginning to see some recovery,
prices are picking up, and more building is occurring,” Crowe says.
