Too Buy Or Not Too Buy,
is this the question you are asking yourself as the lease on your home is coming time for renewal?
In the Post Housing Bubble Era that we now live in, deciding whether to Buy or Rent a home has become much more than looking at house values an home prices. It has become a question of “do I risk it again, it has become a generational issue as the potential young buyers would rather travel or have watched their families struggle with Short Sales and Foreclosures and are afraid to enter the housing market.
I say don’t fret. The key to purchasing real estate is not trying to time the market or buying the “good investment” but it is finding a home you love and can comfortably afford.
This hesitance has created a vacuum of less buyers in the market. In many cases investors have filled that vacuum creating an abundance of rentals. The Metro Phoenix area recently posted the biggest decline in home ownership among major U.S cities according to the U.S. census, even though it is rated one of the nations most affordable metros.
This is tough to understand considering that we are in the golden age of lending. In recent days the Mortgage rates have dropped; after creeping up near 4.75% in April 2014, current interest rats have fallen to near 4.25%.
The areas median sales price has rebounded more than 65% since the crash to $211,000 and rental prices have been rising because of the feverish grab for them from residence.
So what does this mean to the average consumer living in one of the most affordable metros in the nation?
It is calculated that to purchase the average price home in the Phoenix Metro Area you would need to earn just over $42,000 per year and with more loan programs from FHA, VA and USDA loan types it seems that now is the time to buy.
With Rental home prices rising and the difficult time that many people have finding a home that doesn’t already have 3 applicants lined up to rent it, it would seem that talking with a lender to see what you need to do to purchase would be in order; especially if you are in the last 3 months of your current lease or if you have equity in your current home and would like to sell it and purchase up.
Others feel that renting is abetter option because they might move in the next few years. If you are planning to move you have several options.
- Find a quality Property Management company and become a landlord when you want to move. Make your home an income property.
- If you plan to move in 2-3 years there is a good chance that you will have equity in your home to sell without taking a loss.
The factors you should be taking into consideration are long-term plans, interest rates, maintenance costs vs. deposits, tax breaks and what is the best way to invest your money.
For more information please give the Fry Team a call for a no obligation conversation about how we can best help you with your real estate needs.
