September 2022
BUYERS. LISTEN UP.
I know it has been hard. I know you are exhausted. I know you’ve been kicked while you are down. I know all this but hear me now…THE TIME HAS COME. If you EVER want to own in the Greater Nashville area and don’t have an unlimited income to keep paying higher and higher rent prices, please listen to me. If you want to in create stability for yourself now, for your future self, and for your current or future family, please set up a time to talk to me. We want to protect you.
“But Libby! The prices are so high! Why would I buy now?”
You are correct! Prices are higher than ever and I wish I could say that is expected to change. In reality, the opposite is true. What drives pricing? DEMAND. Nashville is not slowing down and isn’t forecasted to slow down in growth any time soon. If you are a buyer in Nashville, or in Middle Tennessee overall, you need to know that a true buyer’s market is light years away. Our inventory shortage is so drastic that it will take YEARS for supply to match demand. In 2021 Nashville Mayor John Cooper’s Affordable Housing Task Force put out a report that stated Nashville needed to create 53,758 units by 2030, and 18,000 of those needed to be affordable to households earning 80 percent of the area median income level or lower. In 2022 the situation doesn’t look much different.
“But Libby! Rates are so high!”
You are correct! Interest rates have been going up since May! Remember when I told you to buy back then and you didn’t? Now it is even more expensive and the bad news is that rates are expected to continue to increase for a while. As a buyer right now, this is good news for you actually. “We’ve never seen a time where mortgage rates have risen as quickly as they have and the market hasn’t cooled off,” real-estate economist Ralph McLaughlin told The Wall Street Journal. “I don’t expect the market to collapse, by any means, but certainly it’s going to go from a gangbuster market to one that hopefully looks more normal.” A normalized market is a good market for you! Buyers have more power! You may even be able to inspect your home before you buy it! What a novel idea! Also, remember, date the rate…marry the home! When rates go back down you can refinance into a lower one and lower that monthly mortgage note.
“But Libby! I don’t get to buy the exact home I want right now! Where is my gourmet kitchen? Where is my Johanna and Chip renovation?”
You are correct! You may not be able to afford the home of your dreams right now! The good news is that you don’t just need to date the rate, you can also date the house. When we play the game of Monopoly, we don’t always get to buy Boardwalk first. Sometimes, to make sure we can survive the game we have to start with purchasing Mediterranean Avenue. The best advice is to hold onto a real estate investment for a minimum of 3-5 years. At that time you can sell the home and use the equity to purchase a new one (hello dream home!), get a home equity line of credit to put money down on another home purchase, or rent the home to have income and a continuing appreciating asset. Real estate is truly a path to long-term wealth building and a physical asset that can be passed down from generation to generation. GO YOU! Way to look out for your future and the future of generations to come…you sly devil!
The only reason not to purchase a home in Nashville now is if you can’t afford it yet or because you don’t want this area to be where you want to stay past the next 6-12 months. If you get this newsletter it is because we like you and we’d really like you to stick around! So let us help you take control of your own life and stay in the city you love.