Although Atlanta real estate market is experiencing significant growth for the past couple of years, slowdowns are a part of real estate cycle. Therefore, if you own a home or considering buying a home in Atlanta or any other city of Georgia, knowing how you can protect your home’s equity from real estate bubbles and crashes is important, if you ever find your self in a complicated situation, then consider getting a home equity loan.
Here are a few tips that will help you protect your real estate investment from an unexpected market crash.
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Wait and Watch
This is the safest way to get through a real estate slowdown if you own a home without a big mortgage loan burden over your shoulders. Although there is a chance that you may lose a big proportion of your home equity if the market does not recover, in most cases, the best way is to stay put. Also, slowdowns are a part of real estate cycle and the market is bound to recover. Therefore, your home will eventually regain its value and you will be able to sell it for a good price at some point in time.
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Opt for Home-Equity Assurance
A Home Equity Assurance is another good option to protect your home equity in case of a market crash. Home Equity Assurance programs work differently. By opting for one, you will be able to get compensation in case your home sells for a lower price than its appraised value. While the benefits of this program are unparalleled, the only disadvantage is that Home Equity Assurance programs are not available in all states. Therefore, consulting with a real estate agent is important to know if you can benefit from a similar program on your next real estate purchase.
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Try Short Selling
If you own a property in a city or state that does not offer Home Equity Assurance programs, you may consider short selling because there’s no downside risk. With a short sale, you will be able to sell your home for a price less than the amount of mortgage you need to payback. The transaction will be record on your credit report and you will be able to get rid of any housing debt that you owe to the lender. However, the only drawback of short selling is that convincing the lender is a complex process. Most lenders do not approve short selling of a home unless it’s on the verge of a foreclosure. However, a real estate agent with excellent negotiation skills and deep knowledge of Atlanta real estate market should be able to help you in such a situation.
These are a few ways using which you can protect your home equity in face of a real estate slowdown. To learn more about buying or selling a home in Atlanta real estate market, you may contact me on my website. To get more tips and tricks, please read my blogs on Platinum Real Estate and Luther Ragsdale.com.