It’s the Perfect Time to Be a Home Buyer
Builder confidence in the housing market slipped this month, according to the National Association of Homebuilders’. They release a monthly Housing Market Index. Confidence slipping is really good news for a home buyer.
The Housing Market Index is actually a weighted composite of 3 separate surveys. One measures current single-family sales; one measures projected single-family sales; and one measures traffic of prospective buyers.
All three surveys produced were down in July:
- Single-Family Sales : From 17 (June) to 15 (July)
- Single-Family Project : From 22 (June) to 21 (July)
- Buyer Foot Traffic : From 13 (June) to 10 (July)
The HMI’s July reading of 14 puts confidence at its lowest point since April 2009.
Sellers are Fighting Over Potential Buyers
For home buyers in Iowa , a drop in builder confidence could create an opportunity for negotiation. That means deals for home buyers.
Remember, it wasn’t too long ago that most builders were flush with home inventory, unable to find willing buyers. To help move product at that time, builders dropped prices and offered incentives including free upgrades. If confidence continues to sag going forward, home purchase deals of that nature may return — especially as the foreclosure market gets larger. The rules of supply and demand at work!
See, in the past, builders’ main competition for buyers were the existing home sellers. Today, builders compete with the existing home sellers and the banks with REO.
In other (much more simple terms) it’s a terrific time to be a home buyer. Sellers are fighting for you. It’s no wonder sellers have little leverage anymore. Couple that with all-time low mortgage rates and affordability for homes is at an all-time high.
If you’re planning to buy a home later this year, you may want to consider moving up your time frame. The market looks ripe for good deals this summer. And, with interest rates as low as they are, your total cost to own a home doesn’t seem to be getting cheaper either. If you’re interested in getting pre-approved, please contact me! I’d be happy to help you out. All of my contact information is on the right of this page.
