Friday, September 29, 2017

Autumn is Good!

Autumn is good for real estate. Sellers can capitalize on summer buyers that are ready to pull the proverbial trigger after failing to find something during the busy summer. Buyers, likewise can tap into the sellers that didn't get their home sold done during the hot months, and are now ready to make a deal.

Many sellers are anxious to avoid having their home listed during the holidays and often buyers are leery of trekking out into the cold to look at homes. Autumn is cool and crisp and prime for making a real estate deal that keeps both parties feeling accomplished and successful.

Market trends show that demand has remained steady and inventory has inched up slightly. There hasn't been a real shift in the market just a bit of settling in. We have very healthy and sustainable conditions throughout most of our local market save for a couple of lingering hot spots. I mention a while back the Beaverton, Oregon remains spicy with well priced homes getting snatched up right away often with multiple offers.

Closer to home here in Clark County the median price for a home is snuggled in just above $300,000 and that is manageable for the median household in the region if not a bit challenging for those carrying extra debt, like auto loans and such.

Since I mentioned debt, buyers that are struggling with the higher prices should use credit sparingly. Lenders will measure the amount of income a borrower has against two primary debt metrics. First their is the housing ration. This is a amount of the borrower's total income is going to be used to make the new loan payment. Depending on the loan type and the down payment amount this should not exceed 28% but sometimes can be a fair bit higher. The other metric is the total debt to income and this takes into account all debts such as credit cards, auto loans, etc plus the proposed new mortgage. Generally the standard has been 36% max, but many government backed program will allow that to stretch up as high as 50%.

A good credit score goes a very long way when debt to income ratios starting pushing the boundaries. Buyers should avoid having a lot of debt and should also avoid having too many open to buy accounts as well. I have read many reports that two trade lines on revolving credit is probably all one should have. Check with your trusted lender to get more information on these lending guidelines.
Most people need to borrow money to purchase a house so being well informed and executing a quality credit plan will help get a house or get a better house.

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