Hello and good morning and welcome back. Today, we're going to talk about four reasons why buying a home right now is a good idea.
Buying a home in the midst of a pandemic:
- No. 1, interest rates are low. That's the biggest one.
- No. 2, inventory is going to remain in short supply for the foreseeable future. So that's probably something that is going to work to your benefit.
As far as future pricing goes, there probably should be some built-In appreciation, certainly not the reason to buy a house, buy the house based on the price that you're paying for it today. Make sure that that's a good deal.
You never you can never predict market changes
You know, it's something that I think both of us have learned is that we thought two years ago we were buying at the top of the market and we learned that we didn't really hit, because home prices in San Diego have continued to go up.
So I bought this house three years ago. Is it only two? Wow. So the market has really, really gone quickly up and it's pretty amazing. But at the same time, you know, with the inventory the way that it is, I think that coming out of a pandemic and coming out of the, you know, the disruption to the job world and everything that we're seeing, there's going to be more movement after this is over.
So we don't know what that's going to do. The market that may create a glut of inventory, the way that people are leaving California and leaving certain cities. San Francisco has had the biggest exodus that they've had since I've lived in California, which is now going on twenty five years. Part of that exodus could possibly be seen in reaping the benefits of it.
Changing Needs
So one other topic is, if your needs have changed, let's say that you were an executive in San Francisco and now you can live wherever and all of a sudden San Diego is looking affordable. Look, we talked we have talked about this in past posts. I mean, we've had several people reach out to us from San Francisco and they're inquiring about not only relocating out of San Francisco, but also doing a big asset transfer. So selling what they have there and relocating here, buying properties here, be apartments or industrial or office or retail, whatever their property segment is. But also they're looking at neighborhoods like Rancho Santa Fe and Solana Beach and Encinitas, and they're amazed at what they can get for two million dollars here compared to two million dollars in San Francisco or what San Francisco used to be like. Now, pricing has come down a lot. So San Francisco is going through a change, too. So if you're in San Francisco, what a great time to buy if you're staying long term.
From Commuter to Working from Home
So back to your needs have changed and all of a sudden you don't need to be right next to your office space. Maybe, all of a sudden, it doesn't matter. You can buy in Escondido because even though your office is downtown, you're working mostly from homes. That commute isn't a factor anymore.
Millennials are Getting Ready to Move
You know, I think a lot of millennials are people are entering in that time of their lives when they're thinking about what the next phases are. They starting a family? Maybe they don't want to be in such a suburban culture. Maybe they can afford to look at places like Alpine right now. A little bit more on the outskirts, provide better school districts.
I think if you're coming from a high density city, like we've seen with Los Angeles, San Francisco, places like that, most everyone is searching for Suburban. They're going I want space. I want a yard. I want to get pets. I want to let my kids run free. And so I think that's a that's a big draw to San Diego right now and certainly to those North County neighborhoods.
Market Changes, Values Doubling
We're seeing I mean, you and I have followed the Rancho Santa Fe market off and on over the last, you know, I don't know, since forever and that market has really changed a lot and has been I feel like it's doubled in value. A lot of markets have doubled in value. But I also think that you can find a really lovely new even new builds and lovely places that are beginning to be, you know, more conducive to your lifestyle.
It's like like El Cajon and I keep on bringing it up as Escondito or Vista and and San Marcos and areas that maybe aren't city of San Diego, but still provide you with the comforts of living next to San Diego about you all like kind of the culture of San Diego. And yet you can afford a single family home or at least one that's in an HOA for six hundred thousand five fifty, whatever it is. And there's a lot of that and there is a lot of that. So if you are willing to kind of. Broaden your horizons. I think a lot of a lot of opportunities still there. Yeah, people that are looking, especially if you're looking for if you're a first time buyer. And this is, I think, more geared towards first time buyers.
Buy What You Can Afford
Yeah. I mean, I think that the most important thing is get into what you can afford, make sure that, you know, you make money in real estate when you buy, you don't make money when you sell. So always keep that in mind. I think the other thing is to, you know, take advantage of the low interest rates if you're in an environment or if you're in a situation right now, the interest rate environment is never going to be better. That's never going to be better. It has nothing to do but go up. So if you can take advantage of some of those factors and you can afford to do it and you're planning on staying long term, then it could be a really great time to buy. Even though the market is pretty heated. And, you know, there's a lack of inventory, there's still a lack of inventory, meaning that, you know, you may not find exactly what you want, but you can still find things within your price range.
So so there's still opportunity, opportunity where buying is something that you can consider that you have enough job security and you've taken in all those factors and all your research now might be a great time to buy. Yeah. Well, thanks for listening. Thanks.
