Here’s why the New Jersey Association of Realtors says buying a home now is good move.

• A recent Reuters/Zogby poll concluded that a majority of Americans think now is a good time to buy a home. A survey of 1,049 likely voters found that 53.8 percent of participants believe now is a good buying opportunity.
  Source: The Reuters/Zogby Index

• According to the Federal Reserve Board’s Survey of Consumer Finances, the average homeowner has a net worth of $184,400 while the average renter has a net worth of $4,000.
  Source: Federal Reserve Board’s Survey of Consumer Finances

• Interest rates are very low compared to years past, Read the rest of this entry »

For almost three years the local homes market has been a strong buyers’ market and now it seems the tide may be shifting somewhat.  Two facts reveal this change:

One is the number of multiple offers on the few homes that are priced exactly right.  That didn’t happen even in the 2008 spring market.

Another is the decline in the number of homes available for sale compared to the number sold in the past month – the Hunterdon Homes Inventory Index. 

<– This graph showing the past years’ Inventory Index – the number of months required to sell every home on the market – shows this improvement compared to July ’07 and July ’06. 

The second graph presents a long view; the past seven years.   Read the rest of this entry »