The posting below is a copy of an article published in Boca/Delray Life Magazine in June of 2006.

In my first article last year the question was “Is There a Real Estate Bubble?” and the answer in short was that it really depended on local conditions as well as the economy and interest rates. My prediction was that locally the market would slow down over the course of a year or two. In fact the market has slowed considerably and sooner than most experts dreamed.

Locally, I don’t think we were in a bubble per se but as I wrote last year all parties come to an end. In our market home prices had historically been far below the rest of the nation when you compared our area to similar areas. Over the past several years we have caught up and home prices are much closer to the average for similar areas, but this area is probably still somewhat undervalued. That being said I don’t expect any major price appreciation over the course of the next year or two, but over the longer term I believe prices will continue to rise.

Other than interest rates and maybe just the fear of the bubble the single biggest factor to slow the market here was hurricane Wilma. I think a lot of people put things on hold and many others to reconsider previous plans. I lot of us were busy getting our homes fixed and buying hurricane shutters to be ready for this season. Hopefully, this year will not bring another hurricane event to our area and the fear factor will subside and home prices will appreciate moderately thereafter.

The market is quite slow these days and homes are on the market much longer however there isn’t a collapse in prices and I wouldn’t expect one. If you’re looking to sell a home this means you probably won’t get the best price selling but if you’re buying a home you’ll probably be able to choose from more homes and get a better deal. If you’re selling and buying you may lose a bit on the sale but you’ll make it up on the purchase.

(Please note that all aspects of this subject cannot be addressed in such a short article. Do your homework and seek the advice of a professional. Our website contains more information on this topic and others you may find useful.

Popularity: 63% [?]

Share This

(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

 Loading ...