Now or Later: When’s the Right Time to Buy a New Home?
Is it time to take advantage of a crashing housing market? If you ask around, it seems two schools of thought are emerging regarding the right time to buy a new home. If you have the means to purchase a home, some believe there’s no time like the present, whereas others are banking on deeper home discounts further down the road.
While it may seem counterintuitive in today’s economic climate — one rife with foreclosures and a skyrocketing unemployment rate — home prices are actually the most affordable they’ve been since the National Association of Realtors started measuring home affordability in 1970 (the Affordability Index is calculated based on home prices, mortgage rates and family income, and their relationship to each other).
If you’re in a position to buy a home and are looking for more than friendly opinions on the matter, MarketWatch.com’s Amy Hoak outlines “Five Reasons To Buy a Home This Year”. She points to first-time homebuyer perks like a $7,500 tax break (which could go up to $15,000 in the new stimulus package) and sellers desperate to move inventory and very willing to negotiate as reasons to jump into the housing game feet-first.
At the opposite side of the spectrum, Ms. Hoak also shares “Five Reasons Not to Buy a Home This Year”. She cites an unstable job market and housing prices that are predicted to continue to fall for at least the immediate future, and most likely through 2011, as justification for unsure buyers to hold back for a little bit longer.
