Now is a Great Time to Buy

[Mike Woods]

In today's market it's understandable that many home buyers are wondering whether the market has hit bottom yet. But here's the thing about waiting for the market to hit bottom: You can never really know when bottom has been hit until you see a sustained trend toward higher prices, and by that time, it's too late, the market is no longer at bottom.

What I tell many buyers is that it is the total cost of a property that matters more than the total price. This is especially true when you are financing a home with a long-term mortgage, such as a 30-year mortgage loan. Just a difference of a couple percentage points on a $250K mortgage, for example, translates into tens of thousands of dollars over the life of the loan. So what good does it do you to wait for prices to come down even more when there is the threat that mortgage rates will climb? Even a small change in mortgage rates can totally wipe out the few thousand dollars you save by getting a home at a lower price. Many Carmel homes for sale and real estate are selling below 90 percent of asking price in central Indiana, for example.

Looking at mortgage rates over the past 30 years rarely have they ever been as low as they are as of this writing. Now is an excellent time to buy give the current low rates. So to anyone wondering whether the market has hit bottom, I say who cares? It's close enough, especially considering how low rates are. So get out there and start taking advantage of these great deals and historically low rates!