Flipping houses was a common phenomenon and those improvements added to the cost for home buyers. Home buyers look for foreclosed homes to purchase because they are usually a lot less expensive. The new trend is that banks are trying to reduce the number of foreclosures. If you are looking at a foreclosed home, make sure you are very careful about having it thoroughly inspected, because it may have been left empty and improperly maintained for a significant amount of time.

Buying a home now has more uncertainty and potential financial issues to consider than in the past. Some people say that for the next five years you are better off renting. Property taxes keep going up to make up for the loss of income from other sources. They are also going up because the cost of running the government has gone up. The costs of home repair are high with prices on materials having increased annually. Also,the economic climate of the area you are purchasing a home in could be uncertain. So many places have seen a total collapse of property values that it is difficult to know if you are making a good decision about the location of your home. The age old wisdom in real estate has always been that the three most important things about property is 1.Location 2. Location 3. Location.

Property purchased today could be the best thing that ever happened to you or the worst. Owning a home just isn’t the secure investment that it was in the past. Life goes on though, so if you want to move forward, and feel confident that you can handle the risks financially, plan on buying a home and staying in it for a long time. Wait until the economy improves before investing large amounts of money into home improvements. Play it safe, keep life simple, count your pennies, and don’t make any sudden decisions. Look at everything that is available and think it through. Kristine Squiers