There's Never Been A Better Time To Buy In Oklahoma

June 7, 2011

Maybe you've been on the fence for a while, asking yourself, "is it a good time to buy a home?" It's easy to play the waiting game. Waiting for the perfect storm of conditions to come together for the lowest, prices, rates, and best availability and options. However most people find that they only know in retrospect, when they should have moved forward to begin the next phase of life. Here are 6 good reasons to buy now, described in more detail in a recent Wall Street Journal Article, "Why It's Time to Buy." Lowest Mortgage Rates in 50 Years - Sure you keep hearing this, but do you really know what that means? According to Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Survey quoted in their May 2011 Outlook, "Homebuyer affordability remains extraordinarily high because of low mortgage rates and house prices that are well off their cyclic peak: The average rate on 30-year fixed-rate conforming mortgages has hovered between 4.75 and 5% for most of this year" Your parents didn't get these kinds of interest rates when purchasing their homes. And in many cases they had a much higher required down payment to even receive a home loan. Home Prices Near Decade Lows - Home prices are competitive with pre-housing boom pricing found a decade ago. The median price for a previously owned home fell to $156,100 in February, the lowest level since 2002 but are on the rise again to $163,700. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) Compared to the year before, however, the pricing is down 5%. The Price to Income Ratio is at Pre-Bubble Numbers -The price to income ratio is the affordability measure generally expressed as the median house prices to the median family income. According to Moody Analytics that ratio is now 20.9%. It is lower than the 15-year average ending in 2010. This is 12.5% lower than the 1989 - 2004 average. Inventory Still High - According to the NAR, total existing home inventory in April grew 9.9 percent to 3.87 million homes, a 9.2-month supply at the current sales pace. Even though inventory levels in Oklahoma remain healthier than the national level, there still remains a buyers' market scenario that allows choice while keeping pricing down for the would-be homebuyer. Long-term Homeownership Benefits - As a homeowner, you can deduct the mortgage interest on your taxes. Unlike renting, you are paying toward your own equity with every monthly payment verses a rental payment toward your landlord's property investment. In a rental home improvements are money out of your pocket you will never see. When you own your home, you increase your own property's value with every improvement to live the way you want. Prices Edging Upward - According to the Wall Street Journal, Moody's Analytics predicts that the number of distressed sales will begin to fall in 2013 causing the prices to edge upward. That coupled with demographic indicators such as rising "household formation" will begin to reduce the amount of inventory on the market causing prices to continue upward with smaller supply and more demand. So if you've been hanging out on the fence in limbo asking yourself whether or not it's time to buy, you are likely to find the perfect home right now verses waiting for the next phase of your life to begin. Image source: ©PhotoXpress.com