Interest Rates

We recently attended the Economic Housing Forecast for Austin, presented by Stewart Title. They do this annually, where they bring in Economists and Consultants from the industry who specialize in the Texas Housing market. This year, we were surprised to learn that these specialists expect interest rates to begin rising soon. In theory, I can understand why this would happen. However, you get comfortable with something like low interest rates and begin to feel like it is the new standard. Well, apparently it is not. These experts expect interest rates to begin rising some time within the next year. The message to the group was that this is the time to buy. Housing prices have never been lower, and interest rates have never been lower. It is a great time to buy, and the time may be short to capitalize on these conditions.

It was a good reminder that smart investors buy low and sell high, and right now prices are low for the first time in over 10 years. Even though the sentiment in the market, at least the stock market, is one of fear…I guess it’s time to think like Warren Buffet who said, “Be greedy when people are scared and be scared when people are greedy.”

-Bethany Jenkins