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“When will home prices start rising in San Diego?”
That was a recent question posted on Trulia Voices. I love questions like this, because as a trained professional, a Neighborhood Specialist no less, this is where I can really shine.
You see, predicting the future is my forte. Just yesterday I predicted that Mizzou would come back in the second half against Oklahoma and… OK. That one didn’t got too well. But college football is so unpredictable. Real estate trends, on the other hand, are those things by which you can set your clock.
So, let’s set our clocks. Home prices will start rising on Wednesday, April 4, 2012. At 3:07 PM. That said, start cleaning out your garages. I am. I wasn’t really planning on moving, but with the way time flies and all, riches may be just around the corner.
That’s what a home is, right? A big ol’ piggy bank?
Yet, as I gaze at the project before me, my garage isn’t speaking to me with the objective voice of a commodity. I see Barbie Dreamhouses abandoned in favor of science fair projects and proms, roller blades long ago outgrown by once tiny feet that have since sprouted wings, photo albums, boxes of memorabilia, and the lawn chairs that used to sit curb side while much younger parents watched a promenade of water fights and training wheels.
Suddenly, I’m not sure I want to move, certainly not for the sake of capitalizing on the potential windfall of a healthier real estate market. Rather, I will move when my life dictates that it is time. And, I am grateful that, for me, it will be a choice. Because behind every front door lies not a balance sheet but a home. Within each home lives not day traders but families. And so many, as Albert Clawson so eloquently reminds us, do not have the luxury of choosing. Read it. Now. We live it every day.
But what if moving isn’t a necessity? Is it a great time to buy? To sell? Maybe. Interest rates are insanely low, and while prices are low as well in the context of the present real estate cycle, so is inventory. Ultimately, it is a great time to buy or sell when it makes sense for you, whatever the reason or the motivation. And when that time comes, whether it is tomorrow or Wednesday, April 4, 2012 sometime after lunch, we can help. That’s what we do — help real people buy and sell homes. You can find us cleaning out the garage.
