Jay Thompson

Sb - sorry for the delayed response, I must have missed this one.

What is an example of when it might (and I stress might) be a good time to buy?

Some people place a value on home ownership. They don't like to rent. They WANT to be able to paint the kids room purple, or knock out a wall, or cut down a tree. They don't want a landlord telling them what they can and can not do.

If such a person plans to live in a home for several years, they may not be so worried about declining prices. Some people don't buy houses stricly for the potential appreciation. Some buy a home to own a home -- that's of value to them.

Interest rates are at historical lows. If you can qualify for a low rate now, locking in that low rate may just offset some of the potential decline in value.

For someone who intends to live in their home for several years, that can accept the fact they may not be buying at rock bottom there are some great deals to be had in the Phoenix area.

If someone is going to check the value of their home every month and stress over every nickle decline in value, then no, they should probably not even be thinking about buying a home.

The fact is, no one, NO ONE, can possibly "call the bottom" in the real estate market (or the stock market, or the pork belly market). They only time you can call teh bottom with certainty is when you look back and say "yep, that was the bottom".

The bottom line is, there are tons and tons of factors that go into any one persons decision to buy (or sell) a home. It's the right time for some, and the wrong time for others. Always. - Tue Jul 15 2008, 12:44

Sb wrote "What I find so interesting is that out of all the answers you received below there was not a shred of evidence or data offered to back up the ascertains that now was a good time to buy..."

I never said it was a good time to buy...

That's a blanket statement that is never accurate. I don't make blanket statements about anything real estate.

Sure, it's a good time for some, and not for others. (likely mostly not)

There are countless factors in determing if it is "a good time to buy". Individual circumstances vary wildly. - Fri Jun 27 2008, 17:04

You always have to take what the mainstream media says with a bit of a grain of salt. Taking these huge metro areas (Phoenix, Vegas, SD, Miami, where ever) and churning out one average number can be very misleading. There is a WIDE variation across the Phoenix area. But yes, when you jam a 10,000 square mile MLS area into one or two numbers, it can look pretty bad. - Wed Jun 25 2008, 22:23

How far SE of Queen Creek? Further than Florence/ Coolidge? - Mon Jul 14 2008, 06:58

Wendy - it probably wasn't "purchased" by a bank. What likely happened was it didn't sell at the Trustee (foreclosure) sale (most don't) and the bank with the original loan (in the amount of $216K) took it back. They then placed it on the market and it sold for 165K. - Sun Jul 13 2008, 23:02

Jojo - $100K in Gilbert will be very difficult to find. There are currently 2,196 single-family homes listed for sale in Gilbert. The lowest list price is $104,900, and there are four others listed for under $115K. After that you quickly go higher. The 18th cheapest home on the list of 2200 is $150,000.... If 100K is your target, you probably need to be looking further out of twon (ie: Queen Creek, Maricopa, maybe AJ).

As far as how long it takes to close, it's mostly dependent on your lender. I've seen closes in as few as 10 days, but that is *very* unusual. 30 days is typical. Most lenders will need at least three weeks.

I'm sure you'll get several agents here soon recommending themselves! You should always interview 2 or 3 (or more if you need to ) to find one you are comfortable working with. - Wed Jul 9 2008, 06:51

"Is this true?"

No, it's not. The bank can reject any offer, regardless of amount, contingencies, or lack thereof. - Sat Jul 5 2008, 21:38