PONDERING, Should I Rent or Buy Now?

Many people – especially singles and young couples who are just starting their careers – have mixed feelings about purchasing their first home. Typically this kind of worry is about getting tied down and taking on a too much debt.

If you're like most first-time home buyers, you've probably listened to several of your friends', family members and or possibly a coworkers' advice that might be encouraging you to buy right now. However, you may still wonder if buying a home is the right thing to do. Please, RELAX; having reservations is a completely a normal feeling. The more you know about why you should buy a home, the less anxiety the entire process will appear to you.
 
Of course I am biased; I own my home plus two rentals which I love. I’m also in favor of renters which also help pay my mortgage down on our other homes. There is no denying that I also want you to be in a position of home ownership as a professional Realtor®. After seeing some benefits of home ownership below you may begin to realize that maybe throwing your money towards rent is not the best idea.
 
Here are 12 compelling reasons why anybody who can afford it should consider buying a home.
 
1) House prices tend to rise over time, so a house can be of the best investments you can make. Home prices in the U.S. have risen three percent to six percent a year for the past 20 years. That trend is likely to continue again. So if you buy a home now, you’ve put your capital in a safe investment where it is likely to grow. Real estate is cyclical, sometimes it is up and sometimes it is down but historically over time, prices have shown that property values do continue to rise; you are buying in one of the best times you will see.

2) You'll pay less tax. This comes in real handy and as a homeowner, one of my favorites, you can deduct the interest you pay on your mortgage from your taxable income. The value of this tax break depends on factors like your personal tax bracket, the size of your mortgage, the rate of interest you pay on it and how long you have held the mortgage. As a general rule, the newer the mortgage, the greater the amount of interest you pay each month and the bigger the tax break. Therefore, recent buyers with young mortgages tend to get the greatest benefit over all.

3) You'll be buying a piece of real property rather than paying your landlord’s mortgage down each month. The real cost of renting is higher than the monthly payment. There is also an opportunity cost equal to the amount you would gain by using the money to purchase a home instead. Even if the house you purchased did not appreciate in price, you would be able to sell it and recoup some of the money you put into it.

4) Interest rates are still historically low. This is one of the best times to snatch these rates up! Most people these days are spoiled and do not realize in the past, interest rates had been 14% - 18% and could eventually go back up. These low rates make it relatively inexpensive to take out a mortgage. The lower the interest rate, the less you actually pay for your house and the sooner you can pay your mortgage off. Contact our loan officer to see what you qualify for at Pinnacle Mortgage. There is no obligation to use them; they are one of our preferred lenders.

5) You'll have access to the equity in your home for low-cost loans or for other purposes.  You can access the paid-up equity you accumulate in your home in the form of a home equity loan or a home equity line of credit. Because they are secured, home equity loans and lines of credit generally carry a lower interest rate than other types of consumer loans, such as auto loans. The interests on these are also generally tax-deductible.

6) You'll have the stability and emotional security of owning your own real home. No more worrying about dictatorial or negligent landlords or a surprise rent increase. You’ll be able to live in your house as long as you like, fix your monthly payments for as long as 30 years and you’ll be in charge.

7) You'll be able to redecorate and renovate any way you like, any time you like. Rules about the paint colors you can use will be a thing of the past. You'll be the star of HGTV™ and be able to tear out walls, install those neat gourmet kitchen appliances and make any other improvements you want. Best of all, if you decide to sell, you'll recoup at least part of the cost of the improvements.

8) You can have a garden. This is one of the big pluses of ownership – a little piece of land you can call your own, where you can grow a veggie garden or a bed of roses, barbeque, and play with your kids and pets.

9) You'll be able to put down your roots in a community. When you're a homeowner, you'll eventually get to know your neighbors, participate in community garage sales, meet potential baby-sitters and enjoy a neighborhood block BBQ party. As a renter they might tend to live more in a secluded dwelling life style.

10) You'll have a greater voice in community affairs. Typically homeowners generally have more clout – individually and through ratepayer’s associations – when it comes to development proposals, school issues, changes to traffic control and routing and the like. Because renters tend to be more transient than homeowners, they have less influence on policymakers.
 
11) One of the biggest incentives now is Congress extended the $8,000 tax credit for First Time Home Buyers. This credit is available to first-time home buyers and/or people who have not owned a home for three or more years. The credit applies to purchases made between 1/1/09 (now) and June 1st of 2010. See if you qualify at $8,000 Tax Credit For First Time Home Buyers.

12) You are buying in one of the number one recovering markets now. Denver was ranked number one and has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the country. There are some pockets around Denver that are actually beginning to appreciate which are signs of an upward market and signs of the market leveling. There is no real estate crystal ball or even economists that can predict what is to come, but eventually what goes down must come back up. We hope you will take this opportunity to see if buying is an option for you.
 

Your buying process should be fun, not stressful. If you are not aware, buyers never pay for our service, it is FREE. Start the process today and see if you qualify.

720-480-4803