When the U.S. housing market began to crash in 2007, it looked like declining values and foreclosure activity would never end. By 2009, most of the country saw a 34 percent decline in their property values, with some areas seeing drops of 65 percent or more. Every day it seemed as if the news brought only more disastrous coverage of the housing crisis.
Investors were even shying away from purchasing these low priced properties. Why purchase today when values would only drop again tomorrow? This was the sentiment felt by everyone concerning the housing market. However, time heals all market crashes, and there has never been a better time to invest into properties and “flip” them for a profit.
The Trend Started In 2012
In 2012, the housing market began to take a turn for the better. Foreclosures activity, while still high, began to ease, which allowed home values to begin to rise. During 2012, home values increased each month, even if only by a fraction of a percent, creating the best year the market has seen in half a decade.
In fact, the housing industry even contributed to the gross domestic product (GDP) of the nation in 2012, which was a first since 2005.
There are many other factors that are creating a good housing market at this time. Unemployment figures have steadily dropped over the last year and a half, consumer sentiment is on the rise, and interest rates remain low, making purchasing a home even more attractive.
What This Means For The Investor
If you are interested in investing into the distressed properties that still remain on the market, or if you are already a real estate investor, this news should make you happy. Even slight increases in home values means that you can easily purchase a distressed home, complete any necessary renovations, and flip it for a great profit because the market is now moving to benefit the seller.
If you are new to this type of business, you may wish to consider partnering with a cash-for-homes business that will help you learn the tricks of the trade. Why would a company be willing to share this type of information? Simple, because there are more than enough opportunities around that will allow everyone to profit.
Will The Trend Continue?
There are people who may wish to invest in this type of venture but are afraid that they will not be able to turn a profit because home prices are steadily increasing. This is, however, the farthest thing from the truth.
Even though home prices have been steadily increasing over the last 15 months, they are still on average 28 percent below their peak values in 2006. Some areas, such as Florida, Nevada, and parts of California are still 50 percent or more below their 2006 values. This leaves an extraordinary amount of room to generate a profit.
Additionally, there are still over 2 million homes in the Shadow Inventory. The Shadow Inventory are homes that are either severely delinquent in their mortgage payment, somewhere in the process of foreclosure, or have been seized by the lender but not placed on the market for sale. With this amount of property still looming, there will still be pliantly of properties available for investments.
Blogger Brady Sullivan is a tradesman and knows that certain types of updating and improvements actually do help your home sell faster. PDXRenovations.com has been transforming the Metro communities of Phoenix and Portland with high-quality property faceliftss, achieving quicker home sales at higher prices.
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/arnoldmasonryandconcrete/7517687932/