The Housing Market Has Already Hit Bottom...

The signs are all over the place. The housing market has hit the bottom and is due to spring up in the next couple months.

Here are the basic facts:
- Home sales contracts rose in June. Click here for the Reuters story
- The $300 Billion Housing Bailout Bill has been signed into law.
Click here for the Reuters Video
- The gas prices we've all felt the pain from have caused the cost of home building materials to raise sharply. Home builders will have to charge more for new homes in the coming months. If they don't (or are not able to get the higher prices), then they will slow down construction of new homes causing a shortage. The rule of "Supply & Demand" says if supply of new homes goes down, then the price will go up. Plain and simple.


What does all this mean to you? Well, the market activity is picking up, sales are picking up, the news media is seeing all the signs of the market stabilizing but are trying to stick with the problem stories because bad news sells better. The stories are beginning to be comical... "The real estate industry had some good news (sales are up), but something bad thing could happen at some point in the future."

I believe that the stories that will be reported starting somewhere around January of 2009 will be reporting that the housing crisis is over, the market hit bottom in August or September with the Housing Bailout legislation... All the polititicians, especially the newly elected ones taking office, will be taking credit for having fixed the housing industry problems. We'll have a new President who will be taking credit for having fixed the problems and created new jobs and got the economy rolling forward again...

The smart investors are quietly gobbleing-up the real estate on the market now and will be for the next few months. Next Summer, you'll be able to recognize them... They'll be the ones smiling!!

-Bill

Outlook Brighter For Washington

The national news is still speaking about the lending industry “crisis”, but Washington State is fairing better than most areas of the country. An article released by Reuters on September 20, 2007* says that “While California suffers in the housing crisis, the economy of nearby Washington state is flourishing with strong job growth and some of the highest appreciation in home prices in the nation”.

While the lending industry is still sorting itself out, it seems that the bulk of the problems are behind us. However, we will continue to see the stricter loan qualifications that were common 5-7 years ago.

Home values are still appreciating nicely. However, they are no longer going up at the double digit percentage gains that Skagit County has enjoyed over the last few years. We still are seeing an increase that outpaces most of the country.

What does this mean to you? Well, if you own a home in Skagit County, you’ve enjoyed a nice increase in your investment. What has changed in your life? A new baby, or sent one off to college? A new job, or retiring? If your home is no longer perfect for your needs, now may be a good time for us to help you find another that suits you better . If you are ready to buy your first home, we can help with that, too!

There are plenty of lenders out there still writing and funding home loans. The good news is that a pre-approval letter is going to be on much more solid footing that it would have been just a few short months ago.

Interest Rates have been coming down as well. Opportunity knocks. The Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark interest rate by half a point on September 18th - The first cut in 4 years!

While every household is different, we can help with your housing needs in nearly any situation. Please call (360) 708-2929 for all of your real estate needs!