If you have been thinking of buying a home in Lake Tahoe recently, you are not the only one. First Time home buyers have been purchasing in numbers that are higher than they have been in 3 years. If you are a first time home buyer, it may be time to take the plunge in to the Lake Tahoe Real Estate market. We know, we know. It takes a lot of work and time to buy a home. First you have to get approved for a loan, then you have to search for a qualified Lake Tahoe real estate agent, then you have to search for the home and the list goes on. Trust us, we have been helping Lake Tahoe buyers and sellers for years and we know it can seem a bit intimidating and stressful the first time you buy a home. Part of a Realtors job is to help you navigate the waters of this unchartered territory in a way that is not only seamless and easy, but helps you understand the process step by step. You may love where you live or renting might make you feel like you have more flexibility, so what is the harm in waiting to buy? Read on as we break down what you could face if you put this off even for just another year based on expert predictions.
Let’s say you find a darling little Lake Tahoe cabin in your favorite South Lake Tahoe neighborhood within your ideal budget of $250,000. With today’s mortgage rate of roughly 4%, you would be looking at a monthly payment of about $1200, principal and interest only and give or take a few dollars. Chances are, you are probably spending pretty close to that in your rent. You may wonder what the harm in waiting is. Well, experts predict that within the next 12 months, home prices will go up about 5%. This means the home that was within your budget is now almost $13,000 more. Interest rates are also predicted to go up to 5%. So your payment would go up roughly $200 more a month. $200 doesn’t seem like a lot in the grand scheme of things but you can look at it a couple different ways. You could look at it like waking up and just throwing $8 in the trash every single morning. Or you can look at it in the form of other payments. $200 is a car payment on a new vehicle, a couple of those monthly massages, those Saturday night dinners out, or the money you have been shoving aside each month for that Hawaiian vacation you have been dreaming about.
Now let’s jump to the bigger picture. Annually that number will be about $2600 more. What is this number at the end of your 30 year loan? A little over $78,000. Sure, $200 a month seems like a number worth waiting for, but is $78,000? There is a reason why so many millennials are flocking to the Lake Tahoe housing market, and it is a good one. Not only are you still getting in on historically low interest rates, but you are saving yourself an ample amount of money in the long run. If you are ready to buy a home in Lake Tahoe, give us a call at (530) 308-4762.
