I bought my first house for $55,000, remodeled it, and made it my primary residence for two years. By living there for two years, I was able to avoid paying capital gains when I sold it.
I listed my home, received a few great offers, and sold it for a whopping $165,000 thinking to myself, "man, I have hit the jackpot! This is nuts!"
Fast forward to today, that same home is worth about $350,000 and I'm sitting here realizing that I should have held onto that house.
Many of us that own homes have considered that process but what's stopping a lot of us today is the interest rate conversation. With the fluctuation in the market, there are a bunch of questions floating around. "Is the housing bubble going to burst?" "Are we in a crash?" "What am I going to do with the rates as high as they are?"
Here is my opinion; We're not in a bubble and the market's not going to crash. What are the interest rates going to do? They might go up or they might go down. The truth is, no one really even knows what the market's going to look like next week.
I know what you are looking for is relief, so here's an answer for you. BUY THE HOME! If rates go down, you have the opportunity refinance your home. If rates go up, guess what? You made a great decision because you got the best rate one could have at the time that you bought your home.
So, get out there and make a move!
- Doug Edrington, CEO at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices J Douglas Properties