Why Would You Want To Sell When The Sky Is Falling?

November 20, 2008

Are you crazy? Are you so flush with money that you don’t mind giving away $20,000 or $30,000 of your equity? I almost said “hard-earned” equity – but for most of us who’ve bought in the last 10 years, we didn’t have to do much other than sit back and watch our home appreciate. But however we’ve earned the equity, it doesn’t seem on the surface to be a good idea to sell right now.

But what if I told you that by giving away $20,000 I’ll give you back $30,000? You’ve now netted $10,000. Sounds a bit better now, doesn’t it? You’re continuing to earn equity the “easy” way – even in this different market.

Let’s say that you own a house that a few years ago was valued at $200,000 – up 30% from when you bought in 1999. Unfortunately prices have dropped in your area so now your home is only worth $180,000 – down $20,000 from 3 years ago. Ouch! It’s no good wishing you’d sold then – that window of opportunity has already passed. But if you have a stable job in an industry that appears to be weathering the economic downturn fairly well, then you might want to consider taking advantage of lower prices on larger homes. If you’ve had to drop your price 10%, then larger, more expensive homes will have to drop their price also. A home that would have cost $300,000 two years ago may now be listed for $270,000.

Then add in the monthly savings of an incredibly low interest rate (I just spoke to a Mortgage rep and he told me as of December 30, 30 year mortgage rates are holding at between the high 4% and mid 5% range. Fifteen year rates are slightly lower at 4.75%.) So what does this mean to your bottom line? For many, the cost is only a couple of hundred dollars more a month for a much bigger comfortable home. Only you can do your calculate what the cost of moving into a more spacious home would be. If I were looking to move up, and my long-term employment seemed secure, I’d definitely be looking now!

As of 03/18/10 the Jack Palmer RePage is ranked at 11,044 with 15 points.
The monthly top RePage owner will receive a cash prize. Help this agent by bookmarking this site and posting it to blogs and other Web pages and encourage others to visit.

Local Information for Columbus, GA

Other Area Cities: Phenix City Columbus Fortson

Enter our Photo Sweepstakes and Win $200 for your Columbus photos!

To see random photos for other cities Click Here.

Submit your photos of Columbus and become eligible to win $200. Click Here for details.

As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 186,291 people, 69,819 households, and 47,686 families residing in the city. The population density was 332.6/km² (861.4/mi²). There were 76,182 housing units at an average density of 136.0/km² (352.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 50.42% White, 43.74% African American, 0.38% Native American, 1.54% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 1.90% from other races, and 1.87% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.49% of the population.Columbus is home to many exciting cultural, artistic, and athletic venues. The Springer Opera House, state theatre of Georgia, the RiverCenter for the Performing Arts, the Bradley Theatre, Port Columbus Civil War Naval Museum, the Columbus Museum, and the Columbus Civic Center. Columbus is also the home of Historic Columbus Foundation's Riverfest Weekend [1], a major Georgia festival and a Top Twenty Event in the Southeast. Riverfest Weekend is always the last full weekend in April. -- Source: Wikipedia.com

Georgia 2000 Census Population Profile Map

	Columbus	Georgia	United States
Population	185,781	8,186,453	281,421,906
Median age	32.6	33.4	35.3
Median age for Male	29.8	32.1	34
Median age for Female	35.3	34.6	36.5
Households	69,599	3,006,369	105,480,101
Household population	176,674	7,952,631	273,643,273
Average household size	2.54	2.65	2.59
Families	47,560	2,111,647	71,787,347
Average family size	3.08	3.14	3.14
Housing units	75,940	3,281,737	115,904,641
Occupied units	69,599	3,006,369	105,480,101
Vacant units	6,341	275,368	10,424,540

Visit US Census