A recent survey done by Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services shows that the end of the federal tax credit will not deter buyers from continuing to buy homes.

Want the stats?

• More than 90% of those surveyed believe the home buyer tax credits have helped both first-time buyers and the overall housing market, but 65% say that the end of tax credits won’t reduce their personal interest in buying a home.

• Over the next five years, 79% expect real estate prices to increase and 20% expect prices to rise substantially. Only 12% believe prices will decrease.

• Among renters, 75% believe owning a home is a better long-term choice for them than renting.

• The majority of consumers also believe that homeownership is a good investment, with 75% saying it is better than stocks or bonds, 72% preferring it to mutual funds and 74% saying it surpasses savings accounts.

We have seen an increase in activity during the first quarter of 2010 with many people wanting to take advantage of the federal tax credits, but the Cincinnati housing market will continue to move in the right direction even after the expiration of the tax credits. Interest rates are at historical lows, homes have become more affordable, and let’s face it; everyone needs a place to sleep.

(Survey Source: Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services, Inc.)

In a press release last week, the Cincinnati Area Board of Realtors released stats that showed Cincinnati home sales were UP FOR THE FOURTH MONTH IN A ROW! Although the market is still very competitive with anxious sellers, this shows that buyers are taking advantage of this great time to buy.

• Low mortgage rates
• Lots of available inventory
• Federal tax credit
• The lowest prices we’ve seen in years

These are all key factors playing their part in our market right now.

Below is a chart that compares the number of home sales in recent months to last year’s numbers.

With the holiday slowdown coming around the corner and buyers reluctantly waiting to see if the government will release another stimulus, the next month or two will continue to be challenging for home sales.
These Cincinnati home sale numbers do show that despite the challenging economy, buyers are returning to the real estate market and feel safe about making an investment in a home.
And that, is good news for everyone.

Don’t miss Cincinnati MLS Open House Weekend
by Matt Clark, Cincinnati Realtor
Cincinnati Real Estate

It couldn’t have come at a better time! Two weekends from now, Saturday and Sunday September 12th and 13th 2009, Cincinnati Realtors are holding a MEGA-OPEN-HOUSE (as we normally do twice a year).

The timing on this event is more crucial than normal because anyone that is planning to take advantage of the FREE $8,000 that the government is giving away is quickly running out of time.
If you have no idea what I’m talking about, see $8,000 FIRST TIME HOME BUYER FEDERAL TAX CREDIT

This incentive program ends December 1st, 2009. If you do not close on a home by December 1st, 2009 you will NOT BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE $8,000 TAX CREDIT.

To find out which listings will be open, use this Open House Search

Despite declining Cincinnati real estate values in the past few years, Cincinnati real estate is still a very solid investment. We’ve all watched our 401k and other investments decline at times too, but did they ever provide us shelter? In the long term, real estate can be one of the safest and most profitable investments around. On the other hand, gone are the days where you could buy a home and sell it two months later for a $50,000 profit! (If it happens on t.v. then it probably doesn’t really happen in reality.)

The moral of my story is this: whenever your family needs to buy or sell your Cincinnati home, it is a good time to do it. Our home is more about our lifestyle than investment criteria.

Buyers are out there and they are BUYING! In the past two weeks, I’ve been in two multiple offer situations and had another client miss out on a perfect home by waiting a few days to write an offer. When you find your dream, RUN AFTER IT!

Check out this story from Channel 9 WCPO on Cincinnati real estate.

Low rates, great affordability, it may be your time to buy Cincinnati real estate!

It is apparent that times are tough right now as we enter into 2009. For the Cincinnati Real Estate market, the outlook is no different. Luckily, Cincinnati real estate did not see huge price appreciation at that start of the decade as some cities did. Cincinnati real estate values may have tripped and fallen, but they did not jump off the roof!

“How to Ride Out Market Cycles” is the title of an article I found today in a newsletter from my stock broker, but it draws many parallels to the Cincinnati real estate market. The bullets of the article are:

• Don’t panic
• Don’t try to time the market
• Review your portfolio
• Stay diversified

Don’t panic. Real estate values increase from a long term perspective. You probably shouldn’t buy now if you plan to sell in a year, but as a long term investment, it doesn’t get much better than a tangible asset like real estate!

Don’t try to time the market. You can’t; it’s that simple. Waiting for the bottom? You won’t see the bottom of the Cincinnati real estate market until it’s on the way back up. Buy for your own reasons. Buy when you find a home you love, buy when rates are good, buy when you see a good investment, or buy when you want to stop throwing money away on rent. When you sell at the top, you’ll buy at the top. When you sell at the bottom, you’ll buy your next home at the bottom.

Review your portfolio. Only own one home? That is still quite an investment portfolio. If you are planning to sell soon, talk to your Realtor and make sure your home has the qualities that today’s buyer is looking for. Often you can do a few very simple and inexpensive improvements and reap major rewards. Do not over improve your home for the neighborhood you live in. This is much easier to do than you think! To get maximum value for your home, it must “fit in” with other homes in your neighborhood.

Stay diversified. Don’t put all your money in stocks, and don’t sink all your money into the real estate market. Investing in multiple different areas will make sure that when you need to sell an asset you can sell one that is towards the top of it’s potential.

Many of us know spend a lot of time managing our stock portfolio but we don’t put the same amount of thought into our real estate assets. When times are tough we roll up our sleeves and work a little harder. Hard work, like real estate, is a long term investment that pays dividends for a long long time!

We currently have approximately 10 months of inventory on the Cincinnati market. A balanced real estate market occurs when there is approximately 6 months of homes for sale. This means that it is a GREAT time to BUY in Cincinnati. This could possibly be the best time in decades to purchase a Cincinnati home.

In contrast, that does NOT mean you can’t sell your home right now. Like I said, over a thousand Cincinnati homes sold last month alone. Your home must be priced correctly, from day one. There is no “testing” this market. You must be priced more competitively than your competition, you must be staged better than your competition, and you must be ready to show your home on a moments notice. Buyers are looking for a great deal; this doesn’t mean they have to take you to the cleaners, but you do have to give them VALUE.

I’m not one for cold weather, but I’ve been out showing homes every weekend this January and I’m surprised at the amount of people that I see out looking at Cincinnati homes. I love this burst of energy that we’re about to see called SPRING. If you are planning on buying or selling this year, now is the time to involve your real estate professional.

Enjoy the weather!

Give me a call today, it is a GREAT TIME TO BUY!

According to Temple University’s professor of economics William Dunkelberg:

• 96% of all mortgages nationwide are being paid on time.
• 30% of American homeowners have no mortgage.
• Delinquency rates were higher in the 1980s than they are today.
• Only 2% to 3% of all mortgages are in foreclosure.

It is very easy to watch the news these days and get a “half empty” view of the real estate market. When was the last time we let the weather in California dictate what we were going to wear today in Cincinnati? That sounds ridiculous, but consumers are listening to the national real estate market and letting it influence their decisions in their local market.

” WHAT THE MARKET IS DOING NATIONALLY
IS IRRELEVANT TO YOU.

The media likes to refer to a “nationwide housing slump,” but don’t be misled. Real estate isn’t national, it’s local! The only market you need to be concerned about is your local market.
Home ownership is the smartest investment you will ever make during your lifetime.”

-David Bach, financial coach and 7 time Bestselling author.