Halloween is right around the corner, and you’re probably looking forward to watching The Shining and the Halloween series for the 958th time. You also may be wanting to host a Halloween party or find a place to hide from those creepy clowns walking around everywhere. Wherever you are, though, you’ll need a place to hide and/or hunker down with some popcorn and a good horror flick. Today’s mortgage market is one of the best in decades, and the place you watch your next Halloween horror could be your own home.
The Halloween Homeowning Horror Film
While the real horror took place around Christmas and New Year’s of 2008, most potential homeowners still think that the housing market is a made-for-TV horror flick. In reality, the housing market has recovered, stabilized, and mortgage rates are at all-time lows. New home buyers are crawling out of the woodwork like Samara crawled out of the TV from The Ring. All Halloween-related movie joking aside, the U.S. housing market is ripe with excellent deals and extremely low, affordable interest rates. Nothing to be scared of there.
Of course rates can change at any time, and now may be your best opportunity to get into the home of your dreams (or nightmares to stick with the Halloween theme). While a rise in interest rates isn’t anticipated in the near future, political and economic stimuli could affect the equity markets and cause a sudden change in mortgage rates. Act soon on the mortgage market, and don’t get scared away by the tricks of rentals.
Your Rent is a Trick, Mortgages are a Treat
Despite the scares you may have experienced from past rentals or even previous homes you’ve lived in, mortgages are a treat for your personal finances and assets.
Rent is a tricky mistress and is often marketed as a “cheaper way of living” and a “more stress-free” way to live in a home. In reality, paying rent is like paying a speeding ticket. You get penalized and get nothing in return for all of your hard-earned money. Mortgages, on the other hand, are a treat of an investment and should be viewed as such. In many cases, for the same monthly price of rent, renters can actually become homeowners. Additionally, you will have ownership in the form of equity with every payment you make on your mortgage and an asset in the home itself.
The Ghosts of Houses Past
The housing market crash nearly a decade ago revealed a lot of bloody skeletons in the proverbial closets of some of the biggest, most established banks in the world. Unfortunately that crash still haunts many who were completely crippled financially from the fallout.
That fear still resonates in the hearts of many Americans and others worldwide as we continue to lick our wounds from that catastrophe; however, those fears are built on the past and not the present nor future market. After the fallout, the U.S. government set standards on how big banks can invest by governing how much risk they can take. This stabilized the banking sector as well as the mortgage industry.
Today’s mortgages and housing investments are far more stable and considerably safer than the highly risky subprime mortgages of pre-2008.
Not Every Home Has a Ghostly Past
For new homebuyers, the process of buying a home can seem daunting. Everything from shopping for a home to applying for the loan can seem a little overwhelming, but the specters that seem to follow you aren’t quite what they seem.
Yes, your first home will be a bit of trial and error as you understand what it’s like to do your own repairs, renovations, and dial in your feng shui. You’ll quickly get the hang of it, and all of the worries and concerns you may have had before, during, or shortly after your home purchase will be put to rest along with those sneaky spooks. Of course, the best thing you can do is talk to a professional who can guide you through the process and make recommendations for you based on your specific needs and financial status.
In fact, possibly the best thing you can do for peace of mind throughout the buying/home ownership process is to get in touch with Tidewater Mortgage Services. An account manager from Tidewater can get you and your family moving in the right direction and give you the sound advice you need for your first home purchase.
