By Julianna Parker Jones
National reports say the housing market is at a standstill, with prices plummeting and no one buying.
But local industry professionals say that's just not the case in Norman -- especially when it comes to first-time home buyers.
Daniel Trumbo didn't let the economy rule his decision to purchase his first home. He closed on his home in northeast Norman April 24.
"I was tired of renting and paying towards something that wasn't building up wealth," he said. In addition to building equity, Trumbo said he also wanted to take advantage of Norman's market conditions.
"I was just taking advantage of the lower pricing, the lower interest rates," he said. He admitted he had some reservations about the economy, but said he felt secure enough in Oklahoma to make the purchase.
"I plan on being there long enough to where hopefully it'll rebound," he said. "But I feel like Oklahoma in general is a more stable real estate market."
Those who sell homes in the Norman area say that Trumbo isn't alone in his opinions.
Home Creations, which most often works with first-time home buyers, has been doing a busy business this year. They sold 328 homes in 2009 as of June 23, while they only sold 388 in all of 2008, said Jan S. Astani, director of marketing for Home Creations.
Realtor Wally Kerr, with Old Town Realtors, also said the market for houses usually purchased by first-time buyers was busy. He said homes priced at about $150,000 and below are selling well right now.
There are a lot of reasons for the uptick in home purchases, not least of which is an $8,000 tax credit provided by the federal government for first-time home buyers. Anyone who hasn't owned a home in the last three years and closes on their home by Dec. 1 can qualify, Astani said.
Astani said most first-time buyers coming to Home Creations are already aware about the tax credit. She said home buyers are informed, and usually know why it makes sense to purchase a home instead of renting.
"It's very much a benefit to be able to put that money into your own pocket instead of someone else's," she said.
Additionally, Astani said it makes sense to buy a home because interest rates are incredibly low and prices in the Norman area are stable.
"We don't have the glamour of New York and we don't have the oceans, but we have affordable housing, so why rent when you can own," Astani said.
Those reasons for home purchase have stayed the same over the past decades, but why are people buying even now, in a recession?
Kerr said he's noticed that people are over the initial shock of the recession and want to get on with their lives.
"There's more optimism," he said. Now that the market isn't dropping wildly, people are beginning to be more open to spending money, he said.
"I think that people have gotten over the shock of how much they lost in the market," Kerr said.
And despite some news coming from the East and West Coast that mortgages are harder to come by now, Kerr said there are a lot of resources for those looking to buy for the first time.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development grant, the City of Norman's community grants, bonds from the housing authority and mortgage credit certificates all help make owning a home for a first-time buyer become a reality, Kerr said.
Kim Giebler of Republic Bank -- Trust agrees that there are plenty of resources for those looking to buy their own home.
Giebler works with those interested in buying a home, and helps educate them at free homebuyer education workshops sponsored by the bank. She said she's a firm believer that educated homebuyers will be responsible homeowners, insulating the housing market from large-scale foreclosures seen in other areas of the country.
"If they get educated and know what they're doing and know what to ask for, ... they're going to be successful homeowners," Giebler said.
She said the key to buying a home in an uncertain economic climate is to be prepared. She recommends having a few months living expenses in savings so that if an emergency happens, mortgage payments won't be the first thing left unpaid.
Chuck Thompson, president and chief executive officer of Republic Bank -- Trust, said there have been some changes recently that make getting a loan for a home a little more difficult than before the subprime loan market tanked.
Mortgages are now required to look good on paper, so you've got to have a credit score, he said. Before, first-time home buyers with no credit could supply information from bill payments over the past year to create something like a credit score, Thompson said. Now, investors want every mortgage to look the same on paper, so you've got to meet every requirement, he said.
But that doesn't mean mortgages are harder to come by than they were 10 or 20 years ago. The risky lending practices have gone away, but those were only new inventions in recent years, Thompson said.
"Now it's not any harder than it ever was in normal times to get a mortgage," he said.
Trumbo said he had an incredibly smooth process of getting a new home. He said he is pleased with his custom-built home with Ideal Homes and will stay there probably until he gets a family.
"It was a really good experience," he said. "The company I went through made it as painless as possible."
Julianna Parker Jones 366-3541 jparker@normantranscript.com
