I have had some interesting questions as of late about refinancing, selling, and rental property, so I thought I would give you some ideas. First and foremost, the best answer is one specific to your situation. So the best course of action is to just give me a call. I can ask a bunch of questions, and I will happily tell you what I really think about your exact query.

The first was a friend who had a fifteen year mortgage already, and she had talked with her financial planner about getting a new fifteen year mortgage, because with todays rates, she could reduce her monthly payment by a couple of hundred dollars a month. The most important factor to me was did she need the extra couple hundred dollars a month. The reason for that is, if the answer is yes, then it makes a lot of sense to do it.

In her instance, the answer was no. Because of that I told her it was in her best interest to keep the mortgage she has. Here is why. To make the numbers easy, let’s say her mortgage is $1,200 month. So if her new mortgage was $1,000 a month, that saves her $200 a month, or $2,400 a year.

However, her current mortgage only had eleven years left. That means, over those eleven years, she would be saving $26,400. ($2,400 a year times eleven years.) She would then be paying $1,000 a month for an extra four years. That means $12,000 a year, and $48,000 over four years. In order to save that $26,400, she would be paying an extra $48,000 for it. It would cost her $21,600 to save $200 a month.

Again, this might make a lot of sense if money is tight right now, and then refinancing becomes the best choice. If all you are thinking about is your monthly payment, though, you might make a poor decision long term.

Please give me a call or shoot me an email any time. I am very happy to help, and I will give you my best advice for your situation. I have tried to talk a couple of people out of selling their houses with me this year, because they wanted rental property, and they already owned real estate. I am going to think about you, and what is best for you.

As always, I love doing what I do. I love looking at the market, and I love building relationships with the people I get to help. Let me know how I can help you. Call me today. You can reach me at 515.639.0047 or RyanLynch@KW.com. I am good at what I do, and I want to help you.

~Ryan Lynch

I have been discussing the same misunderstanding about the market a lot lately. I thought if the people I am talking to are thinking about it, what about the people I don’t get to speak with.

The confusion is about low inventory on the Des Moines Multiple Listing Service. In fact, last year the Des Moines Area Association of Realtors sold almost 2,500 more houses than they did the year before. (To give a frame of reference, we sold a little over 16,500 in 2020.)

Currently there are 1,825 houses for sale. This is record low inventory. However, we currently have 2,745 houses under contract. In the last 30 days alone, 1,418 houses have gone under contract. Think about that. In the last 30 days, almost as many homes have gone under contract as there are currently houses for sale total.

However, we are selling more houses than we ever have. Last year we increased our year over year sales by more than fifteen percent. There are a ton of houses out there. They are simply flying off the shelves.

So what does this mean to you?

If you are a buyer, you have so many houses to look at. And your mortgage is insanely cheap. You need to be on top of what you want and getting out to look as quickly as you can though. Because the three houses you liked last week are gone this one.

If you are a seller, your house most likely will sell for more than you would expect. Of course, condition and competition will always affect your sale. It is a great time to sell right now though.

As always, I love doing what I do. I love looking at the market, and I love building relationships with the people I get to help. Let me know how I can help you. Call me today. You can reach me at 515.639.0047 or RyanLynch@KW.com. I am good at what I do, and I want to help you.

~Ryan Lynch