5 Reasons You Should Consider Selling Now

This backlog of properties that will start coming to the market in about 90 days as banks clear up their paperwork problems. These properties sell at deep discounts. They will be your competition. Based on the existing home inventory plus all the additional inventory about to be added, we are looking at up to six years to work through that inventory pointing to a continued decline in home prices… So you can expect to get less for the your home next month than you will three months down the road… less next year than this year!

3. Interest rates are up over the last six months.

Recent Interest Rates

Also bouncing along the bottom last fall at historical lows, interest rates have climbed over 1/4% in the last six months. Every time the rates increase 1/4%, approximately 250,000 buyers are eliminated from qualifying for a mortgage. In an environment of volatile rates, waiting could mean that there will be fewer buyers eligible to purchase your house. It also could mean that you will pay a higher rate on the next home you buy.

4. Qualifying for a mortgage is about to get even more difficult.

Besides increasing rates, there are other factors that will hinder a buyer’s ability to qualify for a mortgage as we move forward. Lending standards have been getting tighter over the last year. And as the government debates the new proposed risk retention guidelines for mortgages with less than 20% down (QRM – Qualified Residential Mortgages), banks are gearing up for even more stringent standards.

Morgan Stanley recently stated: “Recent developments in issues such as GSE reform, Dodd-Frank securitization rules, and foreclosure settlement issues suggest a tighter and more expensive environment for mortgage credit.” This may impact any potential purchaser for your property and may also impact your next purchase.

5. It’s time to get on with your life.

Maybe the most important reason to sell now is so you can get on with your life. Do not allow a less-than-stellar housing market prevent you from reaching your goals. Think about the reasons you decided to move in the first place. Are these reasons still important to you? If you have to take less than you were originally hoping to get for your house, your family has a question to ask each other: Is the difference in sales price worth putting off our plans? Only you and your family know the answer to that question. If you plan to sell this year or even next, the reasons above prove that selling now makes more sense than waiting to later.

Sit down with a trusted real estate professional today to fully understand the best option for your individual situation.

May the market be with you.

Research for this column was based personal research and from information extracted from the KCMBlog.com  (Keeping Current Matters / Steve Harney  ©)

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