Specializing in Listing Georgia Homes For Sale

Existing home sales gained 2.9% in February to an annual pace of 5.03 million units.  The increase in home sales last month breaks a six month string of declines.  Regionally, sales rose 11.3% in the Northeast, 2.5% in the Midwest, 2.1% in the South but fell 1.1% in the West.  Inventory levels shrank under the improved sales pace.  The inventory of homes on the market for sale fell 3.0% to 4.034 million which represents a 9.6 month supply at the current sales pace compared to a 10.2 month supply in January.  Recent statistics for Camden County showed only 3.5 months of inventory for new construction reflecting a new construction inventory that is considered "healthy."

Price declines over the past year are still steep in some areas of the country but are in part responsible for the increased sales pace last month.  The median home price was $195,900 in February, down 8.2% from $213,500 in February one year ago.  While the increase in sales last month is encouraging, economists at NAR are not expecting significant recovery until the second half of this year, when higher loan limits, along with monetary and fiscal stimulus will unleash pent-up demand.

Personnally I am not sure how much I agree with the "experts."  We have seen very significant activity in our Kingsland and St. Marys real estate markets.  I think home buyers are continually increasing thier knowledge and education on the home buying process as well as the nuances of the real estate markets.  The media can push negative news but due to internet resources as a means to "become informed" buyers are thinking for themselves.  Many buyers recognize that the time to buy is while there are deals to be had.

Regardless of whether the real estate market has already begun to recover or it starts to recover this fall, real estate has historically been a great investment.  You can not pay rent for three years and get anything back when you move.  When you own your home you can sell when you move, have the pride of owneship while you are there, and capture the tax benefits of home ownership.

To put my money where my mouth is...when the market was on fire three years ago I did not buy a single property.  In contrast, while the market has been cooler over the past year Susan (my wife) and I have purchased three homes and one commercial property.

To view homes for sale in the Kingsland and St. Marys area visit the area Home Buyer's Specialist at http://www.KingslandGAHomesForSale.com.  This site is a new buyer information and education tool and it is about 85% complete.  Feel free to review it and provide any input or improvements you think should be implemented as we complete it.

Each year the National Association of Realtors (NAR) conducts a variety of studies to gain insight on buyer and seller trends, motivation, and other aspects of our real estate profession.  The next paragraph is an excerpt from a NAR newsletter revealing a small part of what is in the 2007 version of the research: 

     "A desire to own a home of their own and to establish a household is the most often sited reason for purchasing a home, according to preliminary results from NAR’s Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers. Thirty-three percent of all buyers, and a whopping 70 percent of first-time buyers, express this as their prime motivator in the 2007 report, scheduled for release in November. A job-related move, desire for a larger home, a change in family situation, desire for a home in a better area and a desire to be closer to family and friends are also high on the list of reasons for purchasing a home. Interestingly enough, taking advantage of perfect market conditions was not mentioned -- not this year, last year or...well... ever!"

In my personal opinion, potential home buyers should keep thier focus on long-term goals and not the short-term gloom of the media.  Keep in mind that big media makes BILLIONS of dollars each year by selling advertising space and time.  It is very difficult for them to sell that space/time if there are no Hot Topics to freak-out about.  People simply don't watch the news to hear "all is well".

In the boom of 2005 the media kept talking about the Red Hot Real Estate Markets.  Now they claim that real estate is the worst investment and people should avoid it.  The problem with that thinking, especially in our area, is that a down market is exactly when you buy to get the best deal.  Savvy investors love a down market; they buy during those markets and sell in the up markets.  Granted most home buyers purchase a home because it is their dream rather than as a pure investment, but buying in a media driven slow market simply means you get more home for your money.

Of course there are some areas where real estate is genuinely depressed (i.e. Detroit, MI) but Kingsland and St. Marys, Georgia are not counted among those depressed areas.  Our economy is healthy.  We have military, government employees and government contractors moving in and out of the area, and we have a 3.1 month supply of new construction inventory (this is considered healthy) as of October 2007.  If  you are thinking of buying a home the NAR statistics suggest you would buy because you dream of owning a home - my professional opinion is that now is the best time to buy!  If you wait until the media says the market is solid or hot, you will be paying top dollar for your new home.

If you would like more information on buying, selling, or simply educating yourself, please feel free to visit my site at http://www.YourHomeListingSpecialist.com or call me at 912-322-1350.