Thursday, December 24, 2009

Still Buying a Home for Investment?

From 1890 to 1996, research shows that residential real estate values increased about 27%. I had always advised folks to treat a home as just that, not as a means of growing rich. The small increase in home values would attest to my reasoning over the years.

I got lots of flak in the late 1990s and early in the 21st century, however. That is because, from 1996 to 2008, residential real estate values rose sharply, about 72% on average.

That up-cycle has now come to a sudden demise and is in a down-spin. And I can repeat my old admonition. Buy a home to suit your budget and your family requirements.

If you want to invest in real estate there are other options. For example, commercial realty REIT mutual funds or exchange traded funds (ETFs).

No comments:

Post a Comment