It appears the American dream my generation grew up with has been canceled. My neighborhood is predominantly single family homes – but a large number of the people coming into my office recently are looking for long term rentals.

Apparently someone is spreading the rumor that real estate is going to double dip. That’s very interesting, because I don’t remember it recovering. All the data I read shows prices have gone down and will continue to see pressure for a while. Banks are taking longer to bring distressed properties on the market. By the time you see a for sale sign in front of these homes, they’re run down which only contributes further to the downward pressure.

I spent about an hour today talking to a 20 something year old who is getting married soon and wanted to rent for a few years. When I asked him what he was waiting for, he wasn’t sure.

Here is the point: There has never been a better time to buy real estate, especially to live in it. Prices may drop further but not enough to throw money out the window in an effort to “time the market”. If you prices are going down 10% more, then make a corresponding offer.  It doesn’t matter where the negotiation starts it only matters where it ends up. For as long as man has kept records there is a person who looks back on their past and thinks of that one great deal and says, ”I shoulda, I woulda I coulda”. 

Don’t be that person.