Many people who are first time home buyers are asking themselves the question when is the right time to buy? Should I wait to buy? The National Association of Realtors put together a media campaign that basically stated, “all real estate is local” basically saying you can’t use national statistics for local real estate. I would use the same theory about first time home buying. Let’s explore the pros and cons to buying in a volatile economic market.

The top 3 reasons to buy:

1. If you qualify for the first time home buyer incentive you basically can have $8000 of free money without a repayment plan as long as you live in the home for 3 years. Now I say free because it is free for you, but not to me and all the other taxpayers of America. We are paying for it, so you might as well use it.

2. Home prices in Draper, Salt Lake County, and along the Wasatch Front have dropped. Along the Salt Lake County market June 2008 average home prices were $276,606 compared with June 2009 statistics of $262,521. That is a $14,000 price drop in a year on the average home in Utah.

3. Interest Rates are still very comparable in the low to mid 5% range. Granted there were a few select people who got interest rates in the low to mid 4%, but that lasted for less then a month.

The top 2 reasons not to buy:

1. Don’t buy if you don’t know what you will be doing or where you will be at in 3 years. Because of the uncertainty of the economy no one can predict when the market will fully recover. If you might be changing jobs, or careers now is not the time to be buying.

2. Don’t buy just because the $8,000 tax credit, and low interest rates. If you can’t afford the home no matter how low the rates and how much money you get from the local, state, and federal government, you still will get into trouble.

As a practicing Real Estate Broker working mainly in the Salt Lake County area along the Wasatch Front, I can tell you the number one question I get is, “when will the market bottom out?, and when is the best time to buy?” I will say this, if every home buyer, and future home buyer will buy because it is the great American dream to own your own home free and clear one day, and stop thinking that it is an investment, and using the home’s equity for a piggy bank for exotic trips, recreational toys, and bad consumer debt, our housing market will recover. Is now a great time to buy? Of course it is, tax credits, low interest rates, motivated sellers, lower then normal pricing, but you should be buying not for the deal, or the future equity, but because there is nothing like owning your own home, painting and decorating how you like, and when you want to, and creating memories for you, and your loved ones. As a home buyer I wish I didn’t get caught up in the equity hype, but I did, but when it all boiled down to it, I bought and continue to buy because of the memories my home has created for my family.