Has the Government Helped or Just Slowed The Inevitable?

Some analyst in the housing market have proclaimed the housing roller coaster has finally stabilized. Indeed there is some plausible evidence towards this truth in some markets throughout the country. But is it a real stabilization or just a pause on the inevitable decline in home values. Let's look at the facts:



Fact 1: The government put a moratorium on foreclosures earlier this year which in effect slowed down or limited the number of houses that would have potentially been coming on the market this past Spring and Summer.



Fact 2: Mortgage Rates went down causing more people to jump into the pool of home buying.



Fact 3: The government offered an $8,000 first time home buyers tax credit (which is a loosely interpreted first time home buyer) causing more people still to jump into the pool this year.



So the key question here is were these efforts those that would last or did they just put off the inevitable? It is actually hard to say and since I'm no expert in predicting trends, I will refer to those who are. Ronald Temple of Lazard Asset Management who forecasts these types of things says it could have a positive effect provided that the economy is in better shape with the confidence of the consumer improving. Big IF.



Lazard does point out however, that it is very likely that at the end of all this government intervention sometime around the end of the summer, housing prices will continue to decline somewhere between 8% - 19% more, stating that 10-15% is the most likely scenario.



So what does that mean for you? Well if you are not looking to sell your home, not much. If however you are wanting to list your home to sell and would like to move it in a reasonable amount of time, I would suggest looking at the most current sales comps and then possibly consider decreasing your listing price 10-15% below that. Of course each situation is unique and must be looked at that way, but definitely this is something to consider.



http://www.JamieMori.com





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