The Invisible Hand Is Working

What happens in January, affects all of 2008. There are two distinct, yet equally important events that are taking place now that will regenerate the housing market in 2008. If and when President Bush resets, bails out, backs, or shows support for homeowners with ARM’s, fewer homes will go on the market. When president Bush makes home ownership affordable again for people on the brink of foreclosure, people will decide not to sell, which means current sellers will have less competition; less short sales.

Whether or not this is the infamous invisible hand at work is debatable. The reality of is all is that the market is correcting itself. Traditionally, less of something means prices will go back up again (we hope, but they will more than like appreciate at a crawl). Ironically, or I should say fortunately, interest rates are not raising as speculated and are in fact about the same as what they were 6-12 months ago. Two weeks ago, they fell slightly, but are now edging up. Lower rates are what motivates buyers and the lower the rate, the more house a buyer can afford.

It’s going to be a whirlwind of a first quarter; reminiscent of 2004. There are plenty of good deals to be had (since some sellers have realized that to sell in this market, they have to price it right) and now the buyers know it. There’s no better time for a buyer to be in the market then now, especially when home builders are giving away free upgrades, paying your closing cost, waiving your maintenance fees.

Grab hold of your calendars and start planning away. It doesn’t matter who you are in the market: buyer, seller, Realtor, mortgagor, real estate attorney, home inspector, etc. The world will go on as planned and people will pay their taxes. All is good in the world of house hunting and selling.