I suppose the biggest thing on the minds of buyers thinking about Savannah real estate is -- What's going to happen? will prices go down? will they go up? will they remain stable?

As I have predicted before, I think Savannah has a good future. We are economically diverse and there is no good reason why Savannah will not grow in the years to come. The biggest factor to help assuage fears about the national housing situation is perspective. As a buyer, it helps very little to focus on a short-term situational downturn in a market. However, if the downturn is fundamental and an area is going through long term depression where industry is leaving and many jobs are being lost, then that's another story. Michigan and Ohio are expereincing fundamental problems -- Savannah is experiencing the effects of a national slow down and the slowdown is situational and relatively short-term.

Another question a buyer needs to answer is -- How long will I live in the home I buy? If you are only going to be in a home for a year, then I suggest renting, but if you are buying a home to live in for five years or more, then you should do well over time. The days of buying a home and living there one year then selling for a profit are over.

However, if you are buying as home to be a home, a place to live in and design to meet your personality, to make as an extension of your personality and lifestyle, a real home, then the ups and downs of the market are less important -- over time in a popular area like Savannah, real estate will gradually go up and your investment should be protected.

More people will begin looking at their home as a place to live rather than a cash flow investment. This is how it should be. So if you are thinking about buying in Savannah, and you are planning to live here for a good period of time, getting the home now while prices are stable is probably going to be a good decision. No one knows what the future will bring, but using common sense should tell you that an area like Savannah will be in demand for some time. If Savannah didn't have a bright future, you wouldn't see as much development going on as you see around town. These developers are not building because they think Savannah will be a depressed region -- they are building because they see a future here.