“The market can remain irrational longer than you can stay solvent.”
Whatever you think of John Maynard Keynes, his lofty attempts to save capitalism from itself and the potentially apocryphal attribution, there’s perhaps no quote that frames the housing market better.
No matter what sort of information you have in hand, what kind of windfall you’re stepping into or what color lucky rabbit’s foot you choose to rub, there are always more forces at play than one homebuyer could ever hope to control.
Remember COVID?
Yeah, we didn’t expect that one, either. While (fingers crossed) not every global shock will come at the scale of a pandemic, the state of the world factors heavily into interest rates, housing stock and purchasing power, to name just a few variables. While many experts predicted costs to fall in the pandemic’s early days, the exact opposite happened in most markets. Not only are real estate markets unpredictable… they’re even unpredictable in their unpredictability.
This is it
Not to get all philosophical here, but there’s only a finite amount of tomorrows. Our housing search is subject to both worldly and personal circumstances, and while we’d never endorse wanton spending, sitting around and waiting for just the right moment will often ironically find you further from it. Jobs, marriage, caretaking, retirement—you can make educated guesses about all of them, but there is no way to perfectly triangulate all of life’s twists and turns for a perfect “best-if-used-by” date.
You’re already late
By the time you’ve read up on the latest trends or hot markets, you’re inherently a step behind.
Even in today’s mile-a-minute media cycle, information takes time to transfer and process, and no matter what the investor guru types are saying, the rules of thumb will never change: Only consider what you can afford and make sure you’re shopping with a solid financial foundation. It’s much easier to manage your expectations than your debt.
Think you’re ready?
All of it adds up to one simple maxim: If now is the time, now is the time. Regardless of which way the tradewinds are blowing, your personal financial health is the #1 bellwether for your home search, not the state of the market.
Get in touch with our team today and we’d be glad to help you run some numbers and make the decision.
