Let’s not take the title of this post as it is presented. I am going to write why I think now is a good time to buy your new home. You may not agree to me as most of you will think it in different way and your situation might not be right for taking up a mortgage at this time. So take it with a pinch of salt and assume that this article is for those who are contemplating on buying a home for some time.
We bought our first home in August 2014. Last year around this time we started looking for homes. It’ll take 3 -6 months before you close out on your home buying. So if you want to buy a home this year, now is the perfect time to start looking for homes.
Initially we were bit worried about our finances, but few months later, now I feel it was best decision to make. Unlike a car, a home is an appreciating asset and when you are in an up market you see your home value go up pretty much every month. It’s nice for us to see 5% increase in home value since we bought it.
House prices were on a rise for the past several years, after the great slump, causing a lot of people to delay in purchasing a new house. However, in 2015, many experts are predicting changes in the housing market that if you’re looking to buy a new home, this is the year you should seriously consider.
Here are 10 reasons why you should buy your new home in 2015
Do remember you should not buy something you can’t afford. Buy a size that you can be comfortable living in without having to go for a huge mortgage.
- Calmer market – After the rise of home prices for the past several years, 2015 is looking at slower and less hectic home-buying frenzy due to the easing of housing inventory levels as well as the exits of investors from the market.
- Save on interest – Homebuyers are able to save on interest on their mortgage predictably until end of this year. Currently, 15-years mortgage is at 3.3% and expected to stay below 4% until end of 2015.
- Increased in rent – Records have shown that the rate on rental nationwide has increased to 6.1% compared to the annual home price where it’s at 2.5% p.a. Buying a home in 2015 is now twice as affordable as renting.
- Less millennial purchase – People who are under the age of 35 are not actively purchasing houses as they’re still working to stabilize their finance and personal commitments. This presents fewer homebuyers in 2015 as it will in coming years.
- More cheap houses – Builders are now selling more cheap houses compared to the previous trend of selling fewer but more expensive homes. The ease on credit condition allows people with lower credit score to purchase a new home in 2015.
- Lower buying activities – With the exit of investors as well as the ease on inventory and credits, many experts predict there will a drop in home purchasing activity this year, making sellers giving out lower asking prices.
- Millennial mismatch – Those of this age group tend to live in places where jobs are easier to find, but where home ownership is less affordable. Taking advantage of this will land you homes where it’s suitable for your family and lifestyle and away from city/urban chaos.
- Affordability lowers – Experts are estimating that houses are currently 3% undervalued. This number is expected to go down further up to 10% in 2015. This causes little room for the home prices to rise so as they won’t become overvalued. This situation is a good opportunity to purchase a new home since it’s more affordable in 2015 than it has been before.
- Macro–economic factors – Domestic economic scene plays into property price action. Things like national price crashes will affect home prices and 2015 is witnessing several macro-economic factors that will cause lowered home prices compared to several years ago.
- Global geopolitics – Situations in other countries around the world has affect on the US dollar. High interest in the dollar causes domestic economy to rise and this affect the purchasing power of homebuyers.
Experts are predicting more drastic changes in coming years after 2015, especially once the millennial are ready to start buying houses. So this is when you take the opportunity to get the home that you’ve always wanted before it’s too late.
Readers, are you planning to buy a home this year? What do you think about real estate market now?
This is a great article, and has helped me and my wife make the decision to buy a house. We think that now is the best time to buy a house, and we are financially ready to take that leap. Hopefully we can find a house that is near our jobs, so that we won’t have to travel very far each day.
It would be really nice to save on interest this year. There is a lot of growth in the market and it is probably the best time to get a home for a little while. My wife and I have been looking at getting a new home for a little while now. It would be great to get one now so that we don’t have to worry about interest rates going up.
we bought our home in 2014 and within 10 months the value as per Zillow increased by $30,000 and most of the growth came in the last 6 months.
My wife and I are looking to buy our first home and it can be a little stressful. These are some interesting things to be aware of when buying your first home. It sounds like this is the time to do it! Thanks for sharing this.