IDAHO, USA — It's a new year, with a lot of hope, especially when it comes to local real estate.
Debbi Myers is the president of the Boise Regional REALTORS and has decades of experience in local real estate. So, what does she have to say about what the real estate market is going to do this year?
"My crystal ball is in the shop. The crystal ball shop is apparently overwhelmed with repairs, because nobody seems to be able to get theirs out either."
That's after many folks' crystal balls showed steady housing prices, dropping mortgage rates, and a warming market last year. None of that happened. So, if there's one thing we all learned from last year, it's that the housing market is always going to be full of surprises.
"Don't try to predict. Don't try to time the market,” said Myers. “You can't do that."
As we've discussed on Growing Idaho, it's dangerous to bank on home prices and mortgage rates behaving in a certain way. That could put you in a major financial bind, and you could even lose your house.
However, there are some positive signs. The trends show that home prices are holding steady; and mortgage rates, while still higher than one year ago, are in steep decline.
That means more people can afford a home, and it's the reason why Myers is hoping (but not predicting) that the market will heat up this year. That's also partially thanks to a strong and diverse local job market.
"That's a shift from decades ago when we really only had a couple of industries,” said Myers. “Back in the day when HP did a big layoff, it tanked housing prices in our whole valley."
Idaho has a lot more employers now, and Myers said she expects that to continue to improve.
So, there are some good signs. But what should people do if they need to get into a new home, understanding that it's impossible and dangerous to try to predict the market?
Myers said you'll have a much easier time predicting your own finances. So, put your budget together and stick to it, because you will likely qualify for a bigger loan than you're comfortable paying.
According to Myers, "I always tell first time homebuyers, 'Sit down and do a hard crunch of your budget. Look it over very hard and then tell me, where are you comfortable with a mortgage payment? Where can you feel like you're not going to be panicking at the end of every month with your mortgage payment?' Then go to the lender and say, 'This is what I am comfortable doing.'"
Comfort is key there. To help with that, Myers says there are all kinds of loan programs available out there - from groups like Idaho Housing and Finance, FHA, HUD, etc.
That’s especially for first time homebuyers.
It's possible to get into a place with as little as 3.5% down, according to Myers. That could be less than first and last month's rent and a deposit for the place that you're renting. But again, whatever you decide to do, make sure you're very comfortable, not just okay, with the actual payment.
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