Real Estate

Is 2009 the Right Time to Buy a Home?

Without doubt, the current economy and housing market are struggling. The good news is that reports coming out of the National Association of Estate Agents show home buying and selling is improving primarily from improved interest rates, although only slightly. However, seeing an increase in people looking to buy, as well as new homes on the market, this news is encouraging.

Unluckily, first-time buyers have had a hard time buying homes in recent years for the reason that prices are high. And the fact, studies simply shows that this group accounts for only 10.8% of homes sold.

Even with encouraging numbers, many people are still asking if 2009 is the right year to buy a home. To determine the answer, the Financial Times conducted a study consisting of 50 economists. Of these professionals, 60% stated that 2009 was not the right time to buy but the remaining 40% disagreed but only if property was purchased during the fourth quarter.

Of the 40% of economists that felt buying a home in 2009 was safe, the primary reason that supported their decision was that getting people to buy real estate would help protect and even boost a declining financial market. Mortgage lenders agree that interest rates look optimistic for the entire year and some believe that at the end of 2009, more credit will become available for buyers, especially with the government’s aid.

You will also find economists that expect to see falling real estate prices throughout the remainder of 2009 and into 2010. In fact, several respected companies have put numbers to their forecasting. For instance, Capital Economics believes housing prices will go down an additional 20%, Insight is predicting 15%, and JP Morgan is going with 10%. While difficult to hear, these experts are expecting an end within a short amount of time.

There are numerous factors that come into play before these experts make such predictions and the factors would include rising unemployment, high debt-to-income ratio, restrictions on credit, slow economic growth, and others.

To sum it all, people are not making rash decisions. It is because of the unemployment numbers that the demand of real estate will continue to go down. No doubt that some people that prefer to purchase a new home, which comes with many benefits. Though buyers do exist, yet almost have lost faith in the concept of real estate being a sound financial investment, a great way to build equity and get a return on investment.

Jamie Harris is a real estate investor based in Texas. He is a former estate agent and writes widely about issues related to real estate and finance. His current interests are focused on the UK quick house sale market and how it’s been affected by their property crash. Visit the Uber Article Directory to get a totally unique version of this article for reprint.

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