With all the posts out there about how now is the best time in history to run out and buy a home, I thought it only fair to show you the reasons that you should not do so. The last thing this economy needs is for consumers to start spending money, that would actually cause the great deals to go away. Mainly due to the fact that it would cause the economy and the real estate market to recover, and at this point that's the last thing we need.
10- Rent is fun to pay. I mean it's not at all like having to pay your own mortgage, why do that when you can pay a mortgage for someone else. If you went out and bought a home, there would be one less investor out there getting a free house with your money.
9- The amount of homes for sale on the market. There is no need to running out there when you have a ton of homes for sale at your disposal. You should certainly wait for the numbers to dwindle so you will have less of a choice you decide to buy. This will keep you from having to be so picky.
8- The great deals will be the first to go. This will be your indicator that you are getting close to time to start looking. All the good homes will be taken and then you can go sift through the left overs for what you can salvage.
7- Low Interest rates. Low interest rates will cause your mortgage payments to be lower, and this may make you feel like you are not doing your fair share. You should definitely wait around for those rates to rise so you can make a higher monthly payment. Then you won't have to deal with the guilt of saving money.
6- The price of homes for sale. Currently many homes for sale are on the market at very competitive lower prices. If you can manage to hang in there a little longer without buying a home, then you can catch market during or after a recovery. This means that you will get to pay more for the home than you would today.
5- With today's rates and prices, mortgages on many homes for sale are actually cheaper than rent on the same homes. Again this would possibly save you money, and that's not what you want to do. You need to wait for the prices to rise so you're not getting as good of a deal.
4- A 10% of the sales price tax credit up to $8,000. If you were to buy a home now,and you are a first time home buyer, then you would receive this tax credit. If you can hold out until next year, then you will be able to avoid this tax credit all together. This will save you the aggravation of trying to decide what to do with the extra money on next year's tax return.
3-Builder incentives. At present, in addition to the competitive prices, many builders are offering other incentives on new homes. Incentives like a percentage of of the home for sale depending on your employment and reduced pricing on upgrades. Some are even offering free upgrades and tossing in little extras that they normally do not offer in order to sweeten the pot. This would mean that you could get a great deal on a brand new home in your area, and that's the last thing you want. Wait for these deals to be snatched up other buyers before you even consider looking for your new home.
2- Lack of competition for you. Right now with many would be buyers sitting on the fence trying to make a decision, you would have your pick of the litter as far as the homes currently available are concerned. You need to wait until many more buyers are on the search, that way you can possibly end up in multiple offer situations and have to fight another buyer over the home you really want.
1- The pride of home ownership. There is no reason to come home to a home that actually belongs to you. Why not constantly come home to a house that you are buying for someone else.
I hope that in some way this has helped anyone reading to figure out why you should stay on that fence. There are really too many great deals and incentives out there to subject yourself to making a decision as to which one you want. So hang in there and stay on those sidelines. With a little discipline and a little luck you'll be able to avoid all the great deals that this current market has to offer. Best of luck to you.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
JL Boney, III - Columbia, SC Realtor - Russell and Jeffcoat Realtors
I specialize in Columbia, SC real estate and the surrounding areas, including Blythewood, SC, Kershaw County, Fairfield County, and Lexington, SC. If you are in the market to buy or sell a home in Columbia, SC or any of the surrounding areas, I would love the opportunity to speak with to see how I can help. Thanks for reading and feel free to contact me if I can be of service to you.
Office- 803-788-1450 Cell- 803-730-9601 Email- jlboney@russellandjeffcoat.com
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JL - At first glance, I thought you were hitting it a little early. Nice tongue-in-cheek post.
JL...I had a call over the weekend, and was asked if I thought now was a god time to buy. DUH!! I am not sure how much more needs to be said!
Good one JL...maybe they'll understand that concept :)
I really liked this post JL but hey, I like sarcasm.
OK, you KNEW that this was an automatic:
Featured in the Group "Whacked!!!"
Ohhhhhhh!
I like this reasons. I shall share them with my buyers that are sitting on the fence...
Ginger
JL...
You made the AR Newsletter! As mentioned before, I love these "top ten" posts.
And if you cant buy at LEAST get a great lease option with great terms!
Brian, http://LeaseOptionCoach.com
Nicely put JL! I have passed this on to my prospects, see if this will get them off the sidelines! Cannot be clearer than water...
This is a fantastic post..........and how true it is!!!!! Like, hello-----what are you waiting for????
I couldn't have said it better myself!
Nice Humor. Sad Thing :It won't be so funny when buyers miss opportunities
That's great, JL! Thanks for the refreshing viewpoint. I get tired of trying to help potential buyers in an way understand why now makes sense for many of them -- this might be the way to get through!
Nicely put JL! I have passed this on to my prospects, see if this will get them off the sidelines! Cannot be clearer than water...
You think a lot like I do, which is kind of scary for those that know me! I like the list a lot, it's always nice to get a laugh right after I sent an (expensive) inspection addendum to a seller... : D
Very funny!
You summed it well & I hope many of us realtors will pass that article along to our propspects that are still sitting on the fence...
Aloha!
I LOVE this! I have a 'special' buyer I'm going to send it to!! Thanks, JL!
Very funny, so tongue-in-cheek. But, as you well know, when people (and Lenders) get scared, they tend to crawl into their shell. But the brave ones, like Warren Buffett, realize that now is the time to act. WB is intrepid, not afraid. It's just a question of courage, don't you agree?
Great Post! If that doesn't make this great situation sink into these buyer's heads...nothing will!
Hi JL-You are most creative my friend. I like the way you think. Hope you had a super day. <SMILE>
You forgot the one about if you wait you won't have to get a Realtor who will practically shine your shoes, walk your dog, and throw in a free toaster. Good post. Enjoyed it.
I'm going to read this at my office meeting on Wednesday... this is a great retort to all the wanta be players who have no stomach to get into the market... of course they didn't get in back in '97 either and thought we were all dense for buying then too... thanks ok... better for my buyers and my portifilo ... we can't all be winners.. gotta have the loosers out there!
JL, how true. In one section of my town the cheap deals have gone away. ^ months ago you could find a cheap one ever other day, not now.
Doggone it JL I was thinking about going out and buying a home and now you have talked me out of it. :-))
Good Points all my friend, hopefully you have convinced just one person to get off of the fence.
Hillarious! You had me laughing out loud! I don't know if some of my buyers could handle the truth to all of this without feeling foolish. LOL!
Dear J L,
I loved your 10 reasons not to buy. I will share it with some of my clients. There is one more reason you forgot to mention. With all the money that the federal government is spending and planning to spend that they don't have, the inflation rate will skyrocket within a few years and everything (including real estate) will cost a lot more. It will go up in price along with construction costs and everything else. So, why would you want to buy now when the prices are low and interest is low when you can wait and pay a lot more later?
Great Blog,
Mac
Love the tongue in cheek humor. Hopefully most people will get it. I agree with you sentiments entirely. In fact, I've placed a link to your post on my blog: http://sacramentorealestater.blogspot.com/. I hope you don't mind.
I've got a couple of posts on my blog that discuss why it's a great time to buy. Less humorous than yours, of course.
As a Charleston transplant in L.A., I have made all the same points you are making and want so much to believe. But then I found that my buyers were losing out to multiple offers...sometimes dozens. The good properties -- at least here in Los Angeles -- get snatched up way too fast, and for too much. I call it The Myth of the Buyers Market.
Wow awesome post! As a former stand up comedian two thumbs up. I'm using this for my fence sitters.
Your tongue in cheek post made me grin. Buyers need to understand the realities and then make their decisions.
Reverse Psychology, I like it. Tell everyone they can't have it. Watch them flock to get it. This blog may single handedly change the world.
ha... love it, JL. Nicely written!
At first glance at the title, I thought, hey this agent has fallen off his rocker! Glad I stuck around and read some more! Of course, you may have still fallen off your rocker..:)
JL. How about one more.
Landlords are a needy class. Help them out.
Love it! Thank you for the wake up laugh with my coffee ;-)
Keep the zingers coming!
JL-too fun I am going to share this with our office...a good sense of humor is always appreciated. Thanks
Great job on getting us going with a chuckle. Oh and happy anniversary today. Mine was great dinner and no kids.
I'd like to send this to every one of my prospects, and all those lookers that come to my open house every sunday!! What a great way to get the message across. thanks for posting.
Great post!! I love the humor. I , too, will definitely share this with others.
At first glance, I was like, Are you serious? Then I got it. Ha! Great post and worthy of the feature status. Lenn's addition was a hoot, for sure.
Great post.
Knew it had to be "tongue in cheek", otherwise you wouldn't be in Real Estate, you'd be flipping burgers somewhere.
Very cute JL, I could not have said it better myself.
Great time to buy - now if those darned underwriters would just loosen up a bit.
Nicely done! I too am tempted to share it with certain of my "buyers" (read: professional procrastinators) but fear it may land a little too close to home ;^).
I love your approach to the "timing" question. Great posting.
Great way to reverse things up! Love it..I've got a couple buyers I think I'll send this to....they seem to think we have all the time in the world to find them the "deal".
Congrats on the feature!
I agree totally. I am a landlord, and for the first time I have people asking if they can rent one of my houses - and neither of them are vacant!! I like it that way - keep renting, everyone! (But really, I'm going to meet with one of my tenants to see if we can get her into a house of her own.)
Enjoyable post. At first glance I was very confused, but after reading further it became clearer. I too am a landlord so I am somewhat on the fence here.
LOL, I think I'm going to pass along some of these 'reasons' to a buyers who has been on the fence for the last year. Thanks
Morning JL, Nice tongue in cheek approach to a great topic !
Humor is a good tool. Good post. Give people something to think about. I have told people the minute we get the headline PRICES GOING UP or MARKET IS NOW TURNING my phone will ring of the hook, but by then the change will be three months old and the doom and gloom media just picking it up.
Very well put, it is no time for a serious buyer to be sitting on the fence. Well done.
I enjoyed this post very much. I need to share with a few buyers. Keep them coming!
Hi JL,
I love your approach on this subject.
Great job!
JL,
I thought at first glance, this guy is nuts! Glad I read it, great job and wonderful approach! I think I will pass this along.
Thank you
This is wonderful stuff. Don't you just love the ones that still are thinking that if they keep waiting they will get a $150k home for $15k. NOT!
JL --- Hello to my Columbia friend --- I'm back from my wonderful, wonderful vacation. What an outstanding blog. I'm going to re-blog it so hopefully all of my Agent-Owners will read it. Thanks. Can't believe that this post was not a feature.
Great thought. Maybe we should really start from the back when convincing people that now is the time to buy. Maybe when we stop convincing, we will actually be more convincing.
Nice spin on the NAR brochure. Top 10 reasons not to act so it can cost you financially! Good post & congrats on the feature in the newsletter.
Ha!ha! Very funny. At first I screamed "WHAAAAT?!!! Glad I read to the end. Just love the humor there.
JL: Fabulous!
GREAT POST! I wish I could use it!!? Here in Southern Ca. specifically Riverside/SanBernardino County's prices are still trending down. Lenders are still taking off 5% on appraisal because of that fact! Even my Investor clients are having a tuff time. My pitch is; If you can afford to own the home and you plan on staying for a while, then buy. This is without a doubt, the greatest buying opportunity ever-Period!
Mathews Associates/Agent-Investor-Retirement Planning Advisor-"Building Wealth & Lifestyles for Life"
JL - When I first started reading this blog, I thought you had been smoking the "funny stuff" when you wrote it. . .and then I GOT IT:-)
Great post JL! OK if I print and use it as a hand out at my open houses this weekend? Here in Rochester NY we are one of the few areas that have not been crushed, we are actually up a smidgen! And the builders are giving great incentives. So our buyers really should get off the fence.
Our transaction volume is down a lot, like 20% but our pricing is stable, at least right now. And I am already ahead of ALL of last year (hmmm, can't remember, what year was that?). Our inventory is down - we are seeing emails from agents that have buyers looking for properties, and they can't find what they want, so looking for new listings as soon as they hit.
I really enjoyed this and had a great laugh - especially since my son and his girlfriend are looking for a house in Endicott NY, and I was thinking the same thing - should they, shouldn't they? Our one big concern is they are new hires (June 2008) at Lockheed Martin, so if they get laid off, that could be a problem.
Excellent Tips JL. I think maybe everyone should wait, you convinced me.
JL you did an awesome job with this post. I think it is great to mix in a little sarcasm whenever possible:)
Too funny!! I have some clients that I'd really love to give this too! ;)
LOL! You should send that to DAvid Letterman to do on his show!
JL, I love this blog! It like the angle you took. Great work.
New to Rain .. question ?? some have already passed this on to their clients but some say they
wish they could? what is the proper protocol. can we use it? should we put your name on it as
author? LOVED IT
Thanks for the list. It is always good to have something in writing to actually visualise. If we all stick to it we can get the ball rolling.
Shelton
These are all great reasons but I still maintain that many homebuyers do not have the money for a downpayment, even 3.5%. Maybe that's only applicable in my neck of the woods.
JL this is just hysterical. Between this and your post on 10 ways not to sell your home, you have made my day.
Thank you for your amusing look at the excuses and reasons our clients use for not making a committment.
Claude- I assume several people did.
Bill- Sometimes we don't need to say much.
Sally- We will see.
Melina- I do too.
Richard- I had my suspicions.
Ginger- I hope it helps.
Richard- I noticed that.
Brian- If it makes them happy.
Tony- Maybe it will make them think.
Suto- Thanks for stopping in.
Jamie- Thank you.
Lori- No it will not.
Lottie- I always like to say things a little differently.
Tony- Good luck sir.
Chad- Hope everything worked out for you and your buyer.
Monique- It's easy to be honest.
Kathy- You never know, it might work.
Art- Fear will stop many people, I agree.
Tina- We will see what happens.
Sharon- You have to be a little outside the box these days.
Chris- That will be a given as well.
Connie- I hope your office enjoyed.
John- They are leaving our area as well.
Don- The more that get out there, the better off we will all be.
Jenny- It's not a post for the faint of heart.
Mac- The inflation is coming, I can agree with that.
Michael- I don't mind at all, thanks for the compliment.
Todd- Thanks for sharing, I will give it a read.
Christine- Informed and educated decisions are always the best to make.
Ray- I don't know about that, but it would be cool.
Hendersons- Thanks for the thumbs up.
Jesse- Thank you sir.
Pam- Only time will tell.
Lenn- Well, they are indeed.
Linda- I will try my best.
Michelle- It's a great thing to have.
Laura- No kids is always a nice day isn't it?
Mary Ann- Pass it out and see what happens.
Chad- Hope it helps.
William- Lenn is always here to help.
Joni- No burgers for me.
Dee- Thanks you very much.
Wendy- That's another post entirely.
Beth- I'm sure it would get some attention.
Tom- Thanks for stopping by.
T & R- Pass it on.
Joetta- Best of luck with your rentals.
Courtney- I can understand.
Stuart- It couldn't hurt.
Bill- Thank you sir.
Gene- I think in many places it's already starting to happen.
Ron- It's not time to waste time.
Colleen- I will try.
Ruben- Thank you.
Tony- You're welcome, thanks for reading and commenting.
Kim- There are definitely some out there that believe just that.
Liz- I can't win them all.
Natasa- That was my plan.
Lyn- I didn't read that one, but thanks, I try to check it out.
oineza- Sometimes you have to stick with me to see where I'm going.
Samprons- Thanks!
Matt- This one won't work everywhere yet.
Myrl- Who says I wasn't?
Angela- You are welcome to use the post at your open houses if you'd like. Hope all is well with you and your Son in his search.
John- Glad I could help.
Bill- I try my best to do so whenever possible.
Sandra- Give it to them.
Maria- He want return my messages.
Kim- Just trying something different.
Connie- Always polite to ask permission, but I don't mind people using it if they think it will help them.
Shelton- It's hard to ignore what you're staring at.
Kelsey- Unfortunately, that is the case for many, I agree.
Marney- Glad I could help.
Thanks for the inspiration, my man;)
Thanks for the inspiration, my man;)
OK, I have to admit, Jason sent me. Nice job - You convinced me!
Sardi- You're welcome.
Gary- Thanks for stopping by.
LOL! Getting hate mail baased on this is just silly. Some people just won't get the humor, not matter what kind. And some people just enjoy hating REALTORS®. Considering how much effort I put into working hard for my clients, I'll never understand it.
Lisa- Realtors will always be hated by certain people, it's a fact I except.