I’m sure glad I’m not an economist! The past few months have been disastrous to say the least when it comes to forecasting the economy. Might as well throw darts at a chart and speculate on the value that you’ve hit.
Every week seems to be either super positive or super negative. If one tried to decipher the feeling of the market and only read the paper every second week then they’d probably find it was either fantastic or the worst hangover ever.
Since the housing industry is affected by all aspects of the economy and is a good indicator of the pulse of consumer confidence, I find myself reading many papers and most of the reports that come from the insurers (CMHC, Genworth, Canada United Guaranty) and the many other industry reports that try and forecast the trends.
In these confusing economic times, there definitely isn’t any lack of information to be found, it’s trying to decipher it all to figure out where the economy is at. In analyzing the information, I’ve figured that maybe it’s just time to stop reading them at all. But, that’s not realistic either.
How can I call myself a true professional if I don’t know the pulse of the nation and our economic times and provide my clients with the best information that I can without doing so?
What advice can I provide to you that can be helpful to your own personal economic situation?
Realistically, we all have our own economic budgets that we must keep tidy, for fear of getting the calls from the collectors. We all know exactly where we sit financially, and we all have a very good idea of what we can afford. But the big question, if one is in the market to buy a house is, is now the best time? Am I going to get the best deal for my money in today’s market or a market six months from now or next year?
The answer to that question truly lies within yourself and you have to ask yourself; what are my wants and needs? Human nature tells us that we have to find all of the information by doing all the research and try and make the best decision based on that information and by taking into consideration our own personal financial situation.
Out of our own personal wants and needs questions, timing seems to be the most difficult to answer as we all want the best deal. And in today’s marketplace this seems to be a top priority.
In Red Deer, CMHC calls it a normal or healthy market when we have between 250-350 listings, and currently we have 844 total listings in the Red Deer market, making this a buyer’s market! To top it off, 5 year fixed interest rates (the Grand Puba of consumer’s choice as over two-thirds of Canadians with a mortgage have a 5 year fixed interest rate) have dropped below 4% again for the first time since March 2010!
If you are in the market for a $250,000 -$300,000 home, and have a pre-approval (if you don’t see below for my contact information) then you have the option to choose between 152 properties!
If your own personal financial status is strong and healthy and you are on the fence to buy a home, then it’s time to start your process, as prices haven’t been better in three and one-half years and interest rates are back down to near historic lows.
Warren Buffet, the worlds greatest investor and richest man, says to “Buy when everyone is selling and to sell when everyone is buying”.
Jean-Guy Turcotte is an Accredited Mortgage Professional with his partners at Regional Mortgage Corporation and can be reached for mortgage advice at 403-343-1125 texted to 403-391-2552 or emailed to jturcotte@regionalmortgage.ca.
