I live in an area where people really want to buy houses right now. Places that haven’t been sold for years are now getting offers. Do you think I should sell my house now, rent and wait and see if prices come down eventually to buy a new house? or is it too risky?
I think it's a huge hassle, unless you will make a ton of money in the process. Do you like your house and location? Have you done work to it that took time and effort?
Unless this is your second home I’d never gamble on my only one on such a precarious forecast. Rentals are rising as well. How much do you think you’d be saving in the next two years? What if home prices in your area won’t drop nearly as much as you’re anticipating?
That’s my fear - that it just keeps going up. Probably not a good idea to ”gamble” like this. My house is in a great neighborhood and I can afford it relatively comfortably. My other option would be to invest in a second property (house in my city or apartment in NYC, probably my old neighborhood in Brooklyn). Right now, my money is sitting in a cash account, no interest, and I need to do something with it eventually. Not much but still enough for a down payment.
I would not sell my main home and look to rebuy. Just the realtor fee, staging, cleaning, moving will mean prices need to drop 10% or more for it to make financial sense to rebuy. If you have cash, buy an investment property.