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Beyond the "Bubble"
Smart Home Buying (and Selling)
in an Age of Hype
in an Age of Hype
Here's a guideline that may change the way you view your seemingly cheap monthly rent. To figure out the price of a home you could buy for approximately the same monthly cost of your current rent, simply do the following calculation:
$________ per month x 200 = $ ______________
Example: $1,000 x 200 = $200,000
See? If you are paying rent of $1,000 per month, you would pay approximately the same amount per month to own a $200,000 home (factoring in tax savings).
Don't let "lock out" fears rush you into buying.
From time to time, particular local real estate markets experience rapidly escalating prices. During such times, some prospective buyers panic, often with encouragement from those with vested interests in converting prospective renters to buyers. Escalating housing prices make some renters feel left out of the party. But here's a word of sanity: Never in the history of the real estate business have prices risen so high as to price vast numbers of people out of the market. In fact, patient buyers who can wait out a market that has increased sharply in value are often rewarded with steadying and, in some cases, declining prices.
Make sure selling is right for you holitically, not just monetarily.