Well, anyone trying to sell their home right now might not agree with the title of this post! Call me old fashioned or maybe some might call me delusional, but I still believe that in the future, history will prove this to be true. Real Estate became an area of investment that many people used to build tremendous wealth over the past 50 to 60 years and I do predict that my Grandchildren will someday look back and will be able to say that one of the safest and best long term investments they made were in Real Estate!
So, for those trying to sell right now and who think I am delusional, look at what you purchased the property for and consider the return on your investment. Unless you purchased it in the past 3 to 5 years, you probably made money! But if you want a quick turn on your investment, then Real Estate is probably not where it will come from. These past seven or eight years is not a-typical of what one should expect in this type of investment. If you don't need to sell, don't! Wait this out and sell in 18 months when things will be better than today.
What to do if you must sell... be realistic! Understand that you are not going to get what you might have hoped for and that you may even have to take a loss or look to negotiate a short sale if you are under water (upside down in the loan!).
The market will right itself again and the investment you made will provide a nice return if you can wait it out. Trying to sell now however, will not be easy!
