Brought to you by Scott P. Rogers, Funkhouser Real Estate Group, 540-578-0102, scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com
Brought to you by Scott P. Rogers, Funkhouser Real Estate Group, 540-578-0102, scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com
Thursday, March 26, 2020
School is cancelled and/or happening at home for the rest of the year. Businesses are closing. Folks are encouraged to stay at home and certainly not spend time in groups any larger than 10 people
What does this mean for someone thinking about buying a home? If you were planning to find a home to buy this Spring, should you keep searching for that home and get ready to move forward with a home purchase, given the current state of affairs?
As usual, it depends...
Yes, you should buy a home now...
- Your job may be one of the many that is not at all impacted by social distancing and there may be zero doubt of whether your work hours or income will change in the future.
- Interest rates are tremendously low right now, giving you a great opportunity to lock in your housing costs for the future.
- You might have a little less competition from other buyers right now if they are temporarily pausing their home search.
- We are not yet seeing any indications that the current state of affairs will be negatively impacting home values in our local market.
No, you should not buy a home now...
- If your job or income might be affected by social distancing and working from home, then you might want to hold off on your home purchase.
- If you are only plan to own your home for a few (2-3) years, then you would be more affected if home values did end up being negatively impacted.
- If buying a home would drain your cash reserves (because of the down payment and closing costs) that could make it harder for you to deal with any other economic changes we might see in the coming months.
So, plenty of reasons to buy a home right now, and plenty of reasons to wait for a bit.
As usual, the right answers for you depends on your specific situation as it pertains to where you are living now, why you want to buy, your plans for the near-term and long-term future, your budget, your overall finances, your current job, your future work prospects, etc.
So, if you were planning to buy a home this Spring, let's talk things through and make sure we're thinking about it all from all angles and ensure that you are making the best real estate decision for you given your circumstances and goals.
