Still undecided as to whether you should purchase, when to purchase, or why you should purchase a home? Here are four reasons you should consider buying a home NOW!

 It's really time to get off that fence and take Action!

Yesterday - Today - Tomorrow

Four reasons you should consider buying a home now:
1. Interest rates are not going down anytime soon.  

Interest rates are currently hovering slightly below 4% for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage. However, Zillow is expecting interest rates to rise to 5% by the end of the year, which is a huge difference from the nearly 4% interest rate we are currently experiencing.
Interest rates are not expected to stay at historic lows anytime in the near future, so buying a home sooner rather than later may mean that you may be able to save a few thousand dollars each year, depending on the amount of the mortgage you plan on taking out.

According to the most recent Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Rate Survey, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 4.02% with an average 0.7 point for the week ending June 25, 2015, up from last week when it averaged 4.00%. A year ago at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.14%.

When interest rates push up, the size of the home you can afford is pushed down. Anyone who purchases a home and requires a mortgage loan to do so has a monthly budget, a maximum housing allowance, to go by. If more of your budget is going toward paying interest, that will mean that your actual home purchase price maximum will need to be less than originally planned, pushing you either into a smaller home or into an area with lower prices.

2. There are cheaper mortgage insurance premiums in effect.

Due to there being cheaper mortgage insurance premiums, in some cases it may be a better idea to buy a home sooner due to all of the other benefits of buying now, instead of waiting later when housing may be more expensive and interest rates may be higher. Yes, saving for a larger down payment may be a great idea, but when you combine all of the factors in this article, you may actually find yourself losing money over the long-term.

Back in January, The Obama Administration directed, via executive action, the Federal Housing Administration to reduce annual mortgage insurance premiums by 50 basis points, from 1.35% to 0.85%.

3. We are in an appreciating market, and home values are expected to increase.

Home prices are said to be increasing and they are only expected to keep increasing in the future. Inventory in San Diego is down and extremely low and is expected to shrink further, homes are being sold above asking price, and interest rates are climbing. Also, according to Freddie Mac, home prices are expected to see a price gain of 4.5% in 2015 alone, and they’re expected to keep increasing in the following years.

The latest house price index from the Federal Housing Finance Agency said home prices slightly increased in April, inching up 0.3% from March.

4. Rent prices are increasing.

Rent prices are increasing month after month in the United States and San Diego is no exception. You may even find yourself paying a higher amount towards rent each month than you would if you had a monthly mortgage payment.

According to Zillow’s most recent real estate market report, rents for residential housing in the United States grew at their fastest pace in two years in April, surpassing home values. Rents outpaced home values in 20 of the 35 largest U.S. housing markets.

Zillow, Trulia? Listingbook! Another Great Alternative to Search for Homes in San Diego

This a really an easy way to snoop around and see what's available on the market - whether you're six months out from purchasing a home or just six weeks away from needing to get settled in to the right place. Listingbook is a fantastic home search tool. Listingbook is a program that I sponsor and subscribe to so that potential buyers (and sellers) who express wanting to view properties online have a means to do so. Unlike some of the other big-name property listing programs you'll find online, the listing information contained in Listingbook is accurate and up to date. 

Listingbook interfaces directly with the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and provides you with morning reports that offer information on new listings and status changes such as price reductions or whether a property you've had your eye has gone under contract, has been sold or has come back on the market.

If you're not satisfied with other online tools such as Trulia or Zillow, turn to Listingbook. You'll be able navigate through MLS listings as an agent would, implement your own criteria and track homes of interest.

To get started, send me an email at robert@sandiego-ca-homes.com with some basic information or simply go straight to www.rmsandiegohomes.listingbook.com and follow the activation steps. From there, you are on your own and can search for properties independently. Have a question, you can always send and email, call or text. This is a no-obgligation, no-cost service to you.

Feel free to peruse the brochure below to learn more. Just one click on the image to enlarge.  -Robert