This is a question that I often here.  It seems that almost everyone that knows that I am a Realtor® asks this question when ever we have a conversation. I am sometimes surprised that a particular individual has an interest in the market.  Perhaps they are just wondering about my well being too; but many people are genuinely interested in the market.  Either they have been waiting on the side lines and are wondering if now would be a good time to get into the real estate market as a buyer or they are considering selling a property and are wondering if there are any buyers out there.

As everyone knows, real estate has been in quite a “funk” as of late.  After all the whole economy is down regardless of what business you are in.  Real estate is no different.  However there are signs that a bottom is near.  Last month nation wide sales of existing homes and new construction were up for the first time in a long time. Also the average price of a home was up slightly as well.  That all sounds good and well but who knows for sure?  The stock market has also been showing signs of a steady upward climb.  Perhaps the worst is behind us there will be nothing but blue sky for here on out.  I wouldn’t bet on that either.  Markets, real estate or stock, do not go straight up.  I am sure that there will be short term corrections along the way.  This may also be a false bottom and things could go down even farther.  Know one can predict an absolute bottom and I won’t attempt to do so here.

I do think that now is a good time to own real estate.  Opportunities exist right now that haven’t been seen for quit some time.  Interest rates are still quite low by historic standards even though they are higher than they were at the lowest point a few months ago.  The lowest I heard of was around 4.57% for a fixed 30 year loan and rates today are around 5.5% depending on your credit score and other factors.  That’s not bad.  Home prices are also down quite a bit from the high we saw a couple of years ago.  That looks like a good time to buy to me.  Real estate can also be a good hedge against the inflation that appears to be coming some where down the line when the effects of massive federal budget deficits start to kick in.  We’ve printed a lot of money and a devalued dollar could make for much higher inflation in the future.

How about our local real estate market?  As I have mentioned before in these articles, “real estate is local.”  Even here in Madison County the real estate market is different than it is in say Bonneville County only a shot drive away.  On average there are approximately 17 homes sold in Madison County in any given month.  The numbers range from a high of 40 to a low of just 6 over the past three years or so.  In fact the numbers for the last three months in Madison County were 6, 9, & 13 respectively.  Here again the trend appears to be in an upward direction.  I certainly hope so any way.  Activity is picking up and people’s attitudes seem to be a little more optimistic as well.

Whether you have been looking to buy or sell I believe that now is a good time to make a move.  Only time will tell for sure and by all means do your home work before investing  in or selling a piece of property.  Real estate looks good to me for the foreseeable future.  Talk with a real estate professional today about you options.  I am certain that he/she would be more than willing to spend some time with you to help you explore your options.

Paul Bowen