Homebuyer Heaven Can't Possibly Last

With interest rates at record lows over the past year, there's really only one way for them to go, the only question is when. Most experts agree that rates will remain fairly stable in the short term, at least until the end of the year, and some believe they will even decrease slightly. However, the prospect of a sharp increase in 2005, continuing into the following year will have many mortgagees feeling uncomfortable.

Those most at risk when rates begin to rise again will be borrowers who have been over eager to buy in to the mortgage market while rates were low, without taking the time to secure the best possible deal, or to consider their position in the long term. The low interest rate environment has been ideal for aggressive, unscrupulous lenders to encourage customers to borrow more than they need, or agree to repayment plans they can't realistically afford, particularly when rates begin to rise again. Being in a hurry has also meant many people have been less careful about checking terms and conditions of the loans they are agreeing to. To make matters worse, many homebuyers have been swayed by low interest rates into paying too high a price for their property.

Some financial experts believe interest rates will remain low long enough for an adjustable rate mortgage to continue to be an attractive option, but borrowers will need to be quick. With rates set to rise, an ARM would seem an irrational choice, but this type of loan is still surprisingly popular. Overall rates for this type of loan are generally lower than rates for fixed term mortgages, and for those planning to pay off the loan in a reasonably short time, the remaining period of very low interest rates will still be an advantage. Many experts also believe it's still not too late to take advantage of low rates to refinance a home loan package. The key for borrowers is to keep their cool when negotiating a deal, read the fine print, and think about the long term picture.

David Cannell is a freelance writer and university educator and also the owner of http://www.property-raider.com

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German Stocks Fall Most Since January; Hypo Real Estate Slumps - Bloomberg

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0i-0fd=Rurl=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7653317.stmcid=1251970064ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNHaXQO7Gc_vE-fu4DTkgpxq78YudAimg src=http://news.google.com/news?imgefp=FuNvMoC2FvAJimgurl=newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/45079000/jpg/_45079496_bccf7161-22b0-45f7-9387-493d8faa70dc.jpg width=80 height=60 alt= border=1brfont size=-2BBC News/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-0fd=Rurl=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news%3Fpid%3D20601100%26sid%3DapMYnS6j53Zk%26refer%3Dgermanycid=1251970064ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNEqpwdqWszl-1rPzyQC2vXcP8rp0gGerman Stocks Fall Most Since January; Hypo bReal Estate/b Slumps/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fBloombergnbsp;-/font nobr3 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1Hypo bReal Estate/b, the nation#39;s second-biggest commercial- property lender, tumbled 37 percent as the government and the country#39;s banks and insurers agreed b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-1fd=Rurl=http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DZz0F4-iutWccid=1251970064ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNFMmw5famU6Zi2KJU4AetCKhXZ2cQVideo: Wall St.#39;s worst week in 7 years/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrReutersVideo/nobr/fontobject width=448 height=356param name=movie value=http://www.youtube.com/v/Zz0F4-iutWc/paramparam name=wmode value=transparent/paramembed src=http://www.youtube.com/v/Zz0F4-iutWctype=application/x-shockwave-flashwmode=transparentwidth=448height=356/embed/objectbr/fontfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-2fd=Rurl=http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/hypo-real-estate-tripped-funding/story.aspx%3Fguid%3D%257B2B1A4778-8429-4E11-88E0-96FD0D888991%257D%26dist%3Dmsr_1cid=1251970064ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNEdiUxgAYYd8MKtcGWqkpSknw82cwHypo bReal Estate/b tripped by funding strategy/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrMarketWatch/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-3fd=Rurl=http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,3692522,00.htmlcid=1251970064ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNG_5GG0rMOdn5YRnEpnDs-vOBjzgAGermany Rescues Hypo bReal Estate/b/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrDeutsche Welle/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-4fd=Rurl=http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/german-officials-move-save-hypo/story.aspx%3Fguid%3D%257B99F9DBD1-3CCB-4FD9-A31D-248BFE852C56%257D%26dist%3Dmsr_1cid=1251970064ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNEEB91ykMmV6U3Xgx8SEYYaLQW0_wnobrMarketWatch/nobr/anbsp;- a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-5fd=Rurl=http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/germany-moves-rescue-hypo-real/story.aspx%3Fguid%3D%257BD97E28E7-42B0-4DE5-B730-13B59C349C04%257D%26dist%3Dmsr_1cid=1251970064ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNE-6_PWMQvCGPeeaQyT2sSLAQzA_AnobrMarketWatch/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1251970064hl=ennobrall 2,237 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Real estate roundup: BPA leases Vancouver space - Bizjournals.com

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/1-0fd=Rurl=http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2008/10/06/daily2.htmlcid=1254855186ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNHtmg_5il-CSWfCeQdJHs-1PQrfsQbReal estate/b roundup: BPA leases Vancouver space/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fBizjournals.com,nbsp;NCnbsp;-/font nobr1 hour ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1New amp; Neville bReal Estate/b Services represented Cricket. •Foam Street Investments LLC purchased The Parkview Apartments, a 104-unit complex at 7808 NE 12th b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/1-1fd=Rurl=http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20081006/ARTICLE/810060402/2058/NEWS%3FTitle%3DReal_estate_dealscid=1254855186ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNHjF8TgvF62-prx2Fek0s1dxMNAigbReal estate/b deals/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrSarasota Herald-Tribune/nobr/font/fontbrfont class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1254855186hl=ennobrall 4 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Blumberg Capital Partners Completes Two-Year Real Estate ... - MarketWatch

Real estate wrap: Rowan opens first building at technology park - Bizjournals.com

Commercial real estate feels pinch - Minneapolis Star Tribune

The 2008 Real Estate Review Is the Most Comprehensive Guide to the ... - MarketWatch

Analysts cautious commercial real estate outlook - Forbes

Hypo Real Estate, Deutsche Bank, Metro: German Equity Preview - Bloomberg

Japan Stocks Fall on Hypo Real Estate Bailout, US Job Losses - Bloomberg

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-0fd=Rurl=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news%3Fpid%3D20601080%26sid%3DaCLlNLHwIv5k%26refer%3Dasiacid=1254747604ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNG3UAnxA014tZ_HtVQ1yZ3tEn2ZigJapan Stocks Fall on Hypo bReal Estate/b Bailout, US Job Losses/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fBloombergnbsp;-/font nobr19 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1By Masaki Kondo Oct. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Japan#39;s stocks fell as the biggest US loss of jobs in five years and a bailout of Hypo bReal Estate/b Holding AG fueled b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-1fd=Rurl=http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7012547666cid=1254747604ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNGOuC4oiN6XlQi9kl2_oxE3WYdK4gAsian Markets Trade Lower As Credit Crisis Goes Global/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrAHN/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-2fd=Rurl=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news%3Fpid%3D20601101%26sid%3DaRNEW8NF6B9g%26refer%3Djapancid=1254747604ei=0mXqSK2jI5nU9QTriZSrBAusg=AFQjCNGnDX4Yx8HFRtv2_1m-FRUYrm7-6wJapan Stocks Fall to Five-Year Low as Credit Crisis Intensifies/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrBloomberg/nobr/font/fontbrfont class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1254747604hl=ennobrall 4 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Bank exposure to real estate sector climbs by 5.2% in June - BusinessWorld Online

Real-Estate - Google News

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