Real Estate Laundry » Buying a Home in Columbus - What to expect in today’s market

Buying a Home in Columbus - What to expect in today’s market

August 29th, 2007 categories: Columbus, Financing, Local Communities, Real Estate News

The last few months have certainly been a string of field days for the media. With the apparent collapse of the sub prime lending industry, tougher mortgage regulations, and lots of inventory on the market, Buyers must be stealing homes from Sellers in the Columbus area. In reality, this is not really the case.

If you are considering purchasing in the near future, here are a few things to consider:

Columbus Board of Realtors’ statistics suggest our year to date average sales price is down about 1% from last year. Though last year was the first year in recent history Columbus experienced a decline in average price(-1.8% for 2006), this clearly is not a catastrophic decrease.
Homes are selling. As the chart below indicates, listings sold in July of 2007 were up 5% over the previous year.
Rates are still great. When I started in the business 11 years ago, rates were around 8.5% and Realtors and Buyers alike were all thrilled. Depending on your credit history, employment and downpayment rate you may qualify for 30 year fixed rates in the low 6% range today.
The fact that we have lots of inventory in the Columbus Housing Market today is good for you as Buyer! There many homes to choose from and compare.

My advice to you would be to take what you read in the paper and see on the news with a grain of salt. There are opportunities in the housing market right now and lots of great homes at fair prices.

If you truly want to purchase a Home, be willing to pay fair market value. Sometimes trying to find an incredible “deal” will keep you from finding the perfect home at a fair price. Make sure you establish some detailed criteria to guide you in your decision making process. If purchasing a home well below market value is you number one priority, be patient and don’t become emotionally attached.

As always, enlist the help of a Realtor. A true real estate professional will consult with you about your objectives and how they relate to the current market. Setting expectations up front will be critical to your success in the end.

Related must reads:

Tougher Mortgage Regulations, Westerville Home Sale Statistics

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 29th, 2007 at 4:21 pm and is filed under Columbus, Financing, Local Communities, Real Estate News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Columbus, Ohio Housing Market Ranked 3rd Most Stable in US! said at October 9th, 2007 at 10:35 am
[…] As I have stated in past posts, it is a great time to buy and sell homes. Sure, the Buyers may have the upper hand at the moment, but Sellers are meeting with success when homes are priced and staged properly. If you have been considering a move, don’t let the media keep you from doing so. Get good information, from a professional and make your decision based on the facts. […]
How Spooky is the Columbus Real Estate Market? said at November 5th, 2007 at 9:40 am
[…] Related Must Reads: Columbus Housing Market, Buying a Home in Columbus add to: […]