Are Your Tax Dollars Leading Us Out of the Recession?????
By now we’ve all heard about the First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit. In fact, if you’re not a first time buyer you’re probably tired of hearing about it. After all, no one gave you $8000 when you bought your first house!
So if the housing market is going to lead us out of the recession, the important questions is -- is the stimulus working? In Indianapolis and surrounding areas like Greenwood and Carmel, the answer is a definite “Yes”. Early in the year, first time buyers were trickling into the market, but in the last 4 weeks the flood gates have opened. Recently Steve and I have experienced several instances where we’ve had multiple offers on properties -- we had heard stories about this happening in “the good old days” but had never experienced it ourselves! This is how Real Estate was meant to be!
Just last week I was setting up several showings in the Geist area and was told that 4 of the 6 were no longer available because they sold the day before. Yesterday I emailed a client with some potential Greenwood properties, but when she responded back today, 2 of the 6 had just pended. And it’s not just in the lower price ranges. Typically the first time buyer in Indiana is looking for homes under $200,000. Now that those homes are selling, we’re seeing a trickle up effect. The heightened activity seems to be reaching up into the mid $300,000 range, and with fewer of those homes on the market, if a buyer sees something they like, they need to be prepared to move quickly.
So is the market truly recovering? It’s too soon to tell, but it's looking good and we’re hopeful. In fact, if you know of someone considering selling, let them know that there are plenty of qualified buyers out there looking for the “Perfect Place” and have them give the Hoagland Team a call. We have more buyers than listings. And if you know someone considering buying – tell them to wait no longer! Interest rates are still low, (under 6% today) the tax incentive is in effect until December 1, 2009 (properties must close by this date to qualify, so it's essential to be under contract by mid October), prices are at 2005 levels, and there are still plenty of great homes on the market – but the good ones disappearing quickly!