From a Fellow Broker in Austin Texas

Real Estate: Now a Buy!

The past few years haven’t been the most heartening when it comes to the economy, have they? More than likely, you’re looking at those positive reports of locations like the Austin real estate market through some jaded eyes. After all, it’s not like you haven’t seen the tentative, “oh, it’s about to get better” before, right? But take heart! Economists around the country are putting their weight behind the view that we’re going to see a strengthened economy by the end of 2011.

Not convinced? Consider this: CEO and President of the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank Charles Plosser tells us that “consumer spending continues to expand at a reasonably robust pace, and business investment, particularly on equipment and software, continues to support overall growth.” And, in addition, “the nonresidential real estate sector is likely to improve as the overall economy gains ground.” Translating this, we can see that the low, low prices in real estate that we’re currently seeing won’t last long because of how the market is about to bounce back.

But wait, you still have to consider the mortgage and interest rate. No problem! The mortgage problem really isn’t a problem at all since prices have dropped “on the order of 30% nationwide since 2006, and as much as 55% in the hardest hit markets” according to CNN. On top of that, interest rates are the lowest they’ve been in 50 years and MoneySense Editor Heinz Bulos comments that “[a] good time to buy a  [. . .] home is when interest rates are low, like this year. This will allow you to lock in a low, fixed rate for a 25-year mortgage.”

Take heed: this rebound is good for the economy but it also means that, if you’re going to buy, you should buy now. The low prices in the market are a result of the almost non-existent demand, but that’s going to be changing really soon when the market fully recovers and starts getting going again. Things have been rocky, but now is the time to take the initiative and beat the rush so that you can make the market work for you!

James Kim writes for Austin Real Estate service Homecity.com. HomeCity combines powerful online Austin MLS search technology and other online tools with personalized real estate services to provide clients with the knowledge they need to make the right buying and selling decisions.