Where Do We Go?

One of the questions I am often asked in the current seller's market, which is a very valid one, is once I sell this home, where do I go next? If it is such a seller's market and by selling this home for top dollar, won't I have to pay top dollar for the next home I buy? That doesn't necessarily have to be the case. Also, I am not advocating selling your home just because you will get top dollar, there has to be additional reasons to sell.

First we should discuss the reasons for selling your home. We find on average, people move homes about every seven years. This is typically due to changes in life or lifestyle, such as getting married, having children, those children growing, job change or promotion, children leaving the home, or just wanting a smaller home or yard to maintain. While you will probably get more on the sale of your home now than you would in other markets, unless you have another reason besides purely financial, I would not recommend selling.

Now we can go into my reasoning why selling now may be ideal for you. If you are up-sizing your home, besides the obvious life change events discussed in the last paragraph, it makes sense to make a move now as opposed to waiting for additional reasons.

First, interest rates are still at historically low levels. By moving now you can acquire a new home with a lower monthly payment than you will be able to if they increase. A rate increase of 1% will decrease your buying power by over 11%.

Additionally, while we are in a seller's market in most price points, the higher you look in price range, the more balanced the market is. I am not going to call it a buyer's market, but it is much closer to a stable market when you begin to look at homes priced over $400,000. This means if you are selling at a $250,000 price point you are not buying into that same seller's market that you are selling in.

Finally, making your move now may make sense simply due to the fact that by waiting, you are prolonging your future mortgage payments. If you wait for a market shift in all segments, that may take two years, five years, ten years, who knows really. by waiting you are just extending how long it will take to pay down that next mortgage, which may just be further into your planned retirement. Mortgage payments are one of the items that most retirees would like to have off their plate before reaching the typical reduced income of that phase of their lives.

If you or someone you know is considering buying or selling a home, please put me in contact with them. I would be grateful for the opportunity to go over this and other information in more detail. As always, I am here for any real estate needs.