Flurry of sales gives Realtors hope

Here is an article from the local newspaper about the recent flurry of home sales in October.



Article highlights:

• Realtors say that September could shape up to be a banner month.
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• That notion was bolstered Wednesday by word from the National Association of Realtors that pending home sales rose unexpectedly by 7.4 percent from July to August.
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• Sales picked up in places that have seen the most severe declines in housing prices -- Florida, California, Nevada and Arizona.
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• Buyers are starting to chip away with greater intensity at the region's massive post-boom inventory.
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• The renewed activity has not necessarily been good news for sellers in terms of prices. The median sales price for August reported by the Florida Association of Realtors for the two local markets represented the erasure of nearly five years of appreciation.
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I have been saying for awhile that there is pent up demand for homes. Once people feel that the real estate market has stabilized you should see some strong demand. Prices have come down a great deal making it a good time to be a buyer if your time horizon for owning a home is long enough. Don't expect a pop of appreciation anytime soon. Buy a home to sleep in, raise a family, enjoy and make memories. After all, you need to sleep somewhere every night and the park bench does not look too comfy.

A lot of people are still on hold until some of this uncertainty goes away. Some are waiting to see who wins the presidency. Others are wanting to see how this bail out pans out. Time will tell.