For years we have been moving to the suburban areas for lower prices, and in return we get longer commutes. With gas prices what they are what is the actual cost of our suburban home? WorldChanging.org features an application developed by The Center for Neighborhood Technology. Their interactive map helps people visualize the real cost of an area. The CNT defines affordable as housing + transportation costs are less than (<) 45% of the median income of the area.

Those of us familiar with Cincinnati real estate know that some areas covered in the map have much higher home prices, and people who can afford them. Using median income for the region may not be the best metric.

If the numbers were based on median income by zip code I would feel more comfortable with the application. However, this certainly brings up a good point, with gas at $3.35 a gallon location, location, location takes on a whole new meaning.

Usually we think the media is the enemy as we weather this Cincinnati real estate market, but here comes another exception: Time Magazine’s 2/25 article is titled nothing better than “Ignore the Headlines!”

We couldn’t have said it any better.

People thinking about buying real estate in Cincinnati: read the article now!

People thinking of waiting to get a better deal in the Cincinnati market: read the article now!

The article reviews the assumptions that drive ‘timing the market,’ the correlation between home loan interest rates and the national economy, and a simple financial analysis that demonstrates that as long as you’re going to stay put in your home for a few years, even if the home you bought went DOWN in value 10% over the first year of ownership, you would still be ahead of the guy that waited a year in an effort to time the market and have the lowest monthly payment. Seriously.

Read the article!