Striking While the Iron is Hot

Spanish Fork family uses real estate downturn to upturn their situation

For some homeowners, the past few months have been filled with challenges. But for Scott and Leslie Chandler, the shifting market made it the perfect time to upgrade from their first home.

“We’d been in our first home for eight years and we’d made pretty smart financial decisions, so we thought we could take advantage of the current market situation,” Scott says.

The Chandlers began looking at unoccupied new construction and made offers on several homes. While some of the offers were rejected, one was accepted — giving the family leverage when meeting with other builders.

The family eventually bought an unoccupied new construction home in Spanish Fork, using the accepted offer as a bargaining point. The Chandlers benefitted from knowing what they could afford and sticking to it.

“We made an offer and the builder counter-offered,” Scott says. “We had already offered as low as we would go, so we were going to turn it down. Our Realtor took a reduced commission to make it possible for us to buy.”

Now, the Chandlers are moving into a new home, on a quiet cul de sac, closer to Scott’s work and near the school the couple’s autistic children attend.

That’s good news.

Taylor’s Take
I’m not one to complain, but I’m tired of winter. I’m tired of slow cars on Orem Boulevard (the posted speed is 35). And I’m tired of waiting in line to eat at Iggy’s. But what I’m most tired of is hearing economic doom and gloom.

I believe we hold the future of our economy and our country in our hands. I’m one who believes it ain’t all bad out there. I heard Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert speak, and he summed up why the REALTORS® have sponsored this section of Utah Valley Magazine:

“We often hear the phrase ‘this is the worst since the Great Depression.’ This is like comparing a headache to a brain tumor. We don’t want to understate the current economic challenges, but we don’t want to overstate them either. Let us have an appropriate perspective, particularly here in Utah.”

Todd’s Take
It is truly a great time to invest in real estate. With motivated sellers, mortgage rates and home prices at historic lows, and the federal government giving $8,000 in free money to first-time buyers and others who haven’t owned a home for at least three years, why wait to buy a home?

Governor Huntsman recently signed a bill to create a $6,000 grant program to provide money to 1,600 homebuyers purchasing a newly constructed home. This housing incentive will help fuel sales and clear inventory. It will also allow home builders and the construction industry to get back to work, which will result in a lower unemployment rate for the state.

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