From the Contra Costa Times to the New York Times, articles telling buyers – Now is the Time to Buy – are starting to appear. Finally we have the media’s agreement that it is a buyer’s market and their blessing to buy now.

Unfortunately, as usual, the media lags behind the industry by several months. Savvy buyers reading this blog have been active since the first of the year, their ducks are in a row and many of them are making the deal of a lifetime.

It will take several months of mainstream media singing the new tune before the average buyer begins to contemplate taking action. Waiting for the real estate market to bottom and waiting for the media to announce it has cost many potential buyers the deal they were hoping for.

There are many factors that influence the “good deal.” Relying on house price alone and not taking the other factors into consideration is foolish.

Rates Spike, Mortgage Markets "Utterly Unhinged" – For starters, it means that since last Friday, fixed mortgage rates have screamed higher - going from roughly 5.5% to 6.25% in a matter of days.  That type of move does not happen very often, and it was driven by two factors..

That jump in interest rates eliminates tens of thousands of dollars of savings on house price.

When the general public begins to accept that the market has stabilized, sellers will reenter the market, but they will be much firmer on price. Buyers will lose some negotiating power.

Now is the time to position yourself by getting in the game.