Staying Calm, Objective and Smart in The Savannah Ga Real Estate Market

As we get closer and closer to the election, I suspect there will be wilder and wilder claims from both poles of the political spectrum regarding the economy in general and housing in particular.

However, citizens, buyers and sellers, are smarter today, and more informed than ever before, so most will stay calm and objective and go about their business based on real information regarding the areas they live in and the national effect of financing on that area.

In Savannah, as I have stated previously, prices have stabilized and should remain in a 5% range of appreciation in most areas. Homes that are not in good condition, or in not so ideal locations, will sit on the market longer because there will be fewer investors in the market. This will create good buying opportunities for those who are handy and do most of the renovations needed – but if you have to contract the work, it might make the homes too expensive to be feasible.

I think most people have learned how to tune out the din of looniness regarding real estate that gets louder and louder as time goes on. It takes research and effort, but the truth is clicks away. For anyone wanting to know the reality of the housing situation in their market area, it doesn't take long to find the facts and make a decision, especially if you are using a buyer agent who has the information available on demand.

I think 2008 may see the beginning of the return of real estate to the role of ownership, personalization of space, comfort for families and couples, or private retreats stylized for individuals according to their tastes, and, hopefully we will get away from this incessant micro-crunching/investment fever that has squeezed the meaning out of private ownership.

Don’t expect to buy a home and have it rise quickly in value; those days are behind us for awhile. Buy a home because you want the security of knowing it’s yours and it meets your needs. You still get a tax break, and you will be paying down the principal, and if everything goes like it has been going, there will be some appreciation in the range of 3-5%. But the main thing is that you will have a place that is yours.