Let's go buy a house, let's go buy a house....It is a little reminiscent of Dick Van Dyke in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang singing "Let's go fly a kite." People have a growing concern that waiting is the best option because the home they are interested in will cost less later on and it is better to wait. Is this a good idea? CNBC reported today that a double dip is coming soon to the neighborhood near you.

Deflation of home prices or deflation in general is a difficult thing to deal with and much more difficult to control than inflation (everyone is so concerned about inflation for no reason, more on that in a later post). It sucks the buyers right out of the market and this lack of demand causes sellers to have to lower their prices and it creates a spiral that can be difficult to stop.

So why should you buy a house? Rates are low, prices are affordable and the cost of home ownership on a monthly basis is less than the cost of renting. That fact alone creates demand on the investor side. If an investor can have a positive cash flow then the real estate market becomes more attractive. This segment of investors flowing into the market, for this reason will eat up much of the supply and potentially the home in a neighborhood near you that you had your eye on. Now you will be able to rent that home from the investor vs. owning.

Thinking the value of a home is going to decline is a short sighted way to view the marketplace. For many potential homeowners they should weigh what they are paying now vs. what the payment will be if they are the owner of a home. I recently had a client reduce their living expenses by over $400.00 per month by purchasing her own home vs. what her rent was. The home is newer, larger more comfortable and, it is HERS! She could own it free and clear in less than 15 years if she applied some of that monthly savings to paying down her mortgage balance or, she can take that savings and build her retirement account at a more rapid pace. Either way, the future value of that house is inconsequential vs. what her daily quality of life is as a homeowner vs. renting.

Another aspect is that home values will not continue to decline! At some point, appreciation is going to increase by over 10%. New home construction is at a low, housing is a mess but people still need a place to live! The amount of new supply is not going to be enough to keep up with demand and as that happens, home prices will escalate. Will they return to the overinflated levels we have seen previously? Unlikely! But the values are going to increase sufficient enough that if you weigh the following factors a home is a good investment today:

It is a "buyer's market" your ability to negotiate is better now than ever. A seller concession should always be included in the deal, too.

Your monthly cost can be much lower than either your current rental cost or, the cost to rent a similar unit.

Mortgage programs are friendly to "qualified" buyers. If you have the score and the ability to document your income then it a lot easier process than the media is leading you to believe.

There are more and better choices. Would you like to build? Buy existing? A fixer upper? Ready to move in? Recently built? Recently renovated?

Rates are low! Most will agree that rates are likely to go higher rather than lower. You may and likely will see a point in the next 90 days where we revisit the historic lows of last December.

There are still low down payment programs: FHA 3.5% down, Conventional 5% down, 97% foreclosure purchase through the "homepath" program, 100% financing through the VA and USDA programs. When you combine one of these with an allowable seller contribution to closing costs you might be amazed at how much you can afford compared to your current rent payments.

We can get you pre-approved and this will make you virtually a "cash buyer." Your financing is already in place. This gives you an opportunity to present a competing offer where you may have offered less but since your financing is already in place the seller is more comfortable with your offer. Many sellers have had an offer on the table and ultimately the financing fell through.

Please go to my web site: www.ILmortgageprofessional.com and you can review some useful information and run some calculations that will show you how affordable it can be to buy a home now. The link to the calculator portion of the web site is: http://www.rglovermortgage.com/calc/calculators.rad