Home Buyers Devalued By Familiarity
Home Buyers Devalued By Familiarity
Home Buyers Devalued By Familiarity
Buyers who expect to spend more than the market value of a home should be skeptical of recent news about real estate in this country. While the market looks to be in a down turn and inventory continues to shrink, the endless headlines about the recovery are likely making home buyers uneasy.
Here are a few recent highlights:
– Freddie Mac chief economist Ray Arsal Sano says “Home buying may not be booming, but for those who still want to buy … interest rates are still relatively low.”
– The National Association of Realtors says that recent foreclosures show “signs of stability” and that “more new households are likely to enter the real estate market in 2008.”
Castleek Young, Austin architect and co-lections of premier real estate developers across the country and the world say he is surprised by home buyers’ reactions to the news. Mr. Castleconk predicts that home buying will be down in the year. He says:
“While this recovery is happening at a very slow pace in terms of growth overall, it is happening at a sharp slowdown. The biggest impact will be seen in inventory levels, with homebuilders’ Pullback creating very significant reductions in inventory levels across the U.S.”
Home builders are feeling the pain of this slowdown too. The National Association of Home Builders says resale of existing homes dropped 21 percent in October from a year ago when 7.7 million homes were created, an 18 percent drop from the summer of 2007.
The National Association of Realtors projects home sales will be down 1.7 percent in 2008, a fifth of the projected total sales increase from last year. The National Association of Realtors Project is based on existing sales and assumes builders build at their previous rate.
Home buyers who used to be able to buy with little to no money down are now finding that credit tightening has made it increasingly difficult for them to meet the demand for mortgages.
Large builders of new homes now are reporting record losses because some of their borrowers can no longer meet their mortgage obligations. The largest home builder in the suburbs, Meritage Homes, posted a loss of almost 43 percent in its fourth quarter, the biggest since the group started reporting accurate figures in 1995. 이혼 전문 변호사
The construction industry’s advantages — including low interest rates and historically high home prices — may now be dude in tights. It’s not much help for people trying to get a loan or save their home from foreclosure. Many borrowers of the past simply were better off refinancing into a lower interest rate and moving out.
But for the folks who haven’t been able to meet their mortgage obligations, the less painful option is to simply walk away and let the lender foreclose. Banks won’t be negotiating unless you have significant assets that could be turned into cash.
The best way to avoid a home foreclosure is simple: contact your lender to make sure you can afford to stay in your home, let them know you’re attempting to make extra payments or consider modifying your interest rate for an easier affordable payment.
Contact Mark Nash at ( licew Architects) to discuss what you can do to avoid a home foreclosure and if you qualify for a homebuyer program.