Nationally the market is strong and getting stronger…

 

• 2007 was the fifth best year on record, despite public apprehension about the real estate market. In fact, 2007 was very similar to the home sales and price gains experienced in 2002, when consumers were very confident about the market.

 

• More than seven million new and existing homes were sold in the United States for the fourth consecutive year.

 

• Research indicates that home prices will start to increase in late 2008.

 

• Home ownership continues to be a wise investment. FHA market share is expected to triple over the next three years, from an estimated 4 percent in 2007 to 12 percent in 2009.

 

• A modest recovery for existing-home sales is expected in 2008. Pent-up demand, coupled with an abundance of safer mortgage products, will lead to near-term market improvements.

 

Mortgage rates are ideal for buying.

 

• Mortgage rates are approaching 40-year lows.

 

• Mortgage rates remain nearly 1.5 percent lower than they were in 2000.

 

• Contrary to perceptions, conventional mortgages are widely available at favorable interest rates for the bulk of homebuyers.

 

• Low interest rates, coupled with recent corrections, give people looking to upgrade a unique opportunity to take advantage of market conditions.

 

Homeownership has been—and continues to be—one of the best financial investments.

 

• Americans on average still believe buying a home is a good investment. Nine out of 10 consumers consider home ownership to be a sound financial decision.

 

• Given the leverage in purchasing a home, the average return on a 5 percent down payment over 10 years is usually three to five times greater than stock market returns.

 

• If you bought a house five years ago, it would be worth 49 percent more today.

 

• Real estate has delivered the most consistent positive return over any investment over the last 40 years.