Carole SanekI just received the August issue of Professional Builder magazine. I always read it cover to cover because I like to know the latest building trends. I have always sold mostly new construction and this magazine is always filled with new and exciting construction ideas that I can pass on to my customers.
The very last page of the magazine is called number crunch. It is a page of interesting facts to think about. The one that caught my eye this month started out with the number 8. Then it describes what the 8 means. This is taken directly from the article. “8 A survey on housing data conducted by Global Insight, a financial firm, and banking corporation National City Corp, found that only eight of 330 housing markets are overvalued. According to the survey, housing affordability is back to pre-bubble levels.”
Of course I wanted more information so I googled Global Insight and I could not locate their research, so I googled the phrase “most housing markets are less overvalued” and found the article as part of a CNN Money.com report from 5 months ago. The title of this article is “Housing:Best time to buy in four years.” No CNN did not mean four years from now, they mean right now is the best time out of the last four years to buy real estate.
The article says “Home prices have dropped so quickly and so far that valuations-the difference between what a home should cost and its actual price-are the lowest they’ve been since 2004, according to the report.”
The article then quotes Richard DeKaser, National City’s chief economist as saying the current affordability is “the best in the past four years.” DeKaser goes on to say “This isn’t to say home price declines are over……by the end of 2008, housing markets could be broadly undervalued.”
Statistically the biggest declines in value have been in California, Michigan and Florida which are areas hardest hit by foreclosures.
Do you know what that means? Florida homes are undervalued, let me be so bold to say, many Florida homes are greatly undervalued. The numbers range from 14% to a whopping 79% UNDER VALUED. These figures come directly from the Global Insight/NCC study.
What does this translate into for a smart buyer? Lower taxes, instant equity, and a great return on investment-but more than that it captures the American dream – that of living in a beautiful house in the sunshine state at a bargain basement price.
Author Bio
Carole L. Sanek is a licensed Realtor in Florida and member of the National Association of Realtors. She holds an active real estate license with her husband’s brokerage Castle Dream Real Estate LLC in Brooksville, Florida. She has six years of experience in selling and listing real estate in Florida and enjoys helping families relocate to Florida to Capture The Dream. Visit her website at www.castledreamrealestate.com or contact her directly at 1-888-51-DREAM (37326) or you can email her at her personal email address teamsanek@castledreamrealestate.com
Filed under: Uncategorized
