How To Make Low Home Prices Work For You

The recent economic downturn and subsequent efforts by government to loosen up the credit crunch have created a truly unique environment when it comes to home prices. In many places, housing prices have dropped dramatically. According to one study by Fiserv Lending Solutions the national media home price is down as much as 26% since home prices peaked in 2006. In some places, like Michigan, prices have dropped even more drastically by as much as 40% - 50% or more.

Homes are selling in places that foreclosures are rampant, such as states like Arizona, California, Florida and Nevada. In the last quarter of 2008, almost half of all home sales fell into the “distressed” category, meaning that they were either foreclosures or short sales. As more and more foreclosures hit the market, traditional sellers have had to cut their prices in order to keep up.

This is, in many ways, a buyer’s market. You can make low home prices work for you, if you know where to look. Finding the right bank owned home or finding a home where the seller is asking for less than they owe on their mortgage may get you a very good deal on a home.

There’s another way you can make low home prices work for you, however. You can use the low home prices from short sales and from foreclosures to add pressure when making an offer on a home. Traditional sellers know that they have to compete with these homes, and may be willing to give a lot more in their negotiations than they would have just a couple of years ago.

By studying your local market and exploring all of the available options, you can make these low home prices work for you. You may be able to find the ideal home for your family, and to find it at a much lower price than you’d have hoped for.

Related posts:

1. When To Buy A Foreclosed Home: Part Two
2. Bank Owned Property Basics
3. First Time Home Buyers: Things to Consider
4. When To Buy A Foreclosed Home: Part One

Tags: bank foreclosures, bank owned homes, buying a home, first time buyers, foreclosures, low home prices
Posted in Buying A Home |

Tags: bank foreclosures, bank owned homes, buying a home, first time buyers, foreclosures, low home prices

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 7th, 2009 at 2:14 am and is filed under Buying A Home. 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.