When you ask a real estate agent, “Is now a good time to buy?” you’d probably expect to hear (or have heard), “Yes, it’s always a good time to buy!” Of course, their business is selling houses, so why would they say otherwise? If you ask me, I’d add two words to that initial question — “Is now a good time to buy…for me?” My answer: “Let’s talk and see.”
The truth is each of us is different, from our financial situations to our priorities and risk profiles, and that’s why I always walk potential buyers through a few key questions to help them determine what’s best for them.
The first question is always about timing, as the real estate market goes through cycles with peaks and valleys. Time is your friend on many levels when it comes to real estate (just check out the equity gains homeowners have seen in our area) and it’s always better to have flexibility as to when you’ll want to or need to sell (if ever). You’ll gain equity through your mortgage payments (although early on a larger portion goes to pay interest) and, depending on the micromarket (neighborhood, type of housing, etc.), you can earn quite a bit in a year. But that’s not always the case, so we want to make sure you’re okay with all scenarios — yes, even the worst case ones.
In the Washington, DC area, we are fortunate to have a less volatile market than many areas of the country. Competition may mean you have to pay more than you’d like to as a buyer at a particular moment, but time can cure that. Higher interest rates (and, yes, they may go up more after the Fed meets again soon) may not seem great when you look at the sub 3% rates of a year ago; however, 6% doesn’t look so bad when buyers paid more than 16% on average in the early 80s! It’s cliché but true: you marry the house but you date the rate. With property values on an upward trend, waiting for a lower interest rate means losing time building equity and quite likely paying a good deal more for that house in the future.
I could go on and on, but the question we started with is a personal one, so let’s move from generalizations and talk about you and your needs. Click or tap the button below to reach out for a no obligation consultation.
Amber Harris is the owner of At Home DC, an interior decorator and a licensed real estate agent with Keller Williams Capital Properties working with clients in DC, Maryland and Virginia.