Waqas Ellahi left the corporate world behind in 2016 to work full-time in real estate in Phoenix. He sees his role as advising people on maximizing their investment, whether they\u2019re buying or selling their home. And he aims to guide them to ensure that every dollar is utilized in the best manner possible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This expertise is important in Phoenix, which has been one of the hottest real estate markets in the U.S. The housing market in the Greater Phoenix area recovered after a Covid-19 slump, with demand soaring to new heights before cooling and shifting more buyers\u2019 favor. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I transferred from corporate America because I always wanted to run my own business, and I always loved helping people. I\u2019ve been doing this since 2016 and have really enjoyed it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I moved from Chicago and came to Arizona in 2012. It was a job transfer at the time which had me come out to Phoenix, and I loved every moment. I really enjoy Phoenix. I know the summers get hot, but as long as you’re indoors, you can get through the summer. The rest of the year is beautiful.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
>> <\/strong>Related Read: What Is an Islamic Mortgage and How Does It Work?<\/strong><\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n We’re at a very interesting stage right now. We’ve gone through the craziness that we had\u2014actually, even before the pandemic. But once the pandemic hit, we had a couple of months that were rough because nobody knew what was going on. We had these lockdowns, and I honestly feared the worst at that point because they wouldn’t let us go out. You couldn’t do anything, and then, lo and behold, once they opened some stuff up, people were still scared, so they weren’t putting houses on the market. So the demand just became extraordinary. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you wanted to buy a house, you didn’t have anything to choose from, up until I would say three, or four months ago. As a buyer, you were just like, \u201cJust give me something, I don’t care what. Just take the money and give me a house.\u201d We would walk into lines and lines of people at a single home that would become available. I remember telling some of my clients, I was like, \u201cOkay guys, it’s okay to hang in there, we’ll get our turn.\u201d But now the last three, or four months, I do feel like the market has shifted.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n I would not say it’s declining. I think the biggest factor is interest rates. As a buyer, you can pay somebody $10,000, $20,000, $30,000, even $40,000 extra because you can afford it with the rate, but when that rate doubles and even more than doubles… some people are at 2.7% or 2.8% now we’re talking 6% to 6.5% depending on their situation. So now that makes it harder for a buyer to afford a home, and some of them don’t even qualify anymore.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n So I think what you’re going to see is that buyers can be more careful about their decision-making and pick the right home for them. I think it’s good for the market in that sense. And it’s going to be very interesting. I think these next few months coming up, what they do with the rates is going to continue to define our market. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In Phoenix and Austin, we were the hardest markets in the U.S. literally for two, or three years. The reason was, that we had big traffic coming from all over the country, but specifically from California because Los Angeles and the Bay area were getting so crazy with the prices that a lot of people would sell their homes in Los Angeles or in San Francisco, San Diego, and come and buy a home or even two homes there. They would come in and make these crazy cash offers. That made the market harder and harder and harder in Phoenix because no matter how expensive the house was, it was pennies compared to California.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n But now, because of the rates, they’ve brought more houses to the market. So it’s not as crazy as it was. Let’s say an average market has about 17,000, and 18,000 homes available at a time. We had some times in March when I would say there were 4,000 or 4,500 homes\u2014that’s it\u2014to choose from. So you can imagine when you have 10,000, 15,000, 20,000 people or 25,000 people looking, and they only have 4,000 homes to choose from, it obviously makes it like wars basically. But now we’ve had about 17,000, 18,000 homes on the market. So that’s what I think you’re going to continue to see if the rates stay high.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Definitely, it’s a much easier time to buy right now compared to four or five months ago when you basically were priced out. Definitely save as much as you can. That would be the number one tip because it’s not as simple as saving 5%. You want to save, if you can, 8, 9, 10%, or even more because not only does that give you more equity in the house, but it also makes your payment lower. Some people think they’ve saved 5% and that’s it they\u2019re done. But you\u2019ve got to save for closing costs as well. Nobody tells you about that. That’s why I would say save as much as you can being a first-time homebuyer. And I would say go ahead and buy because homes are expensive in general, but how much sense does it make to rent a home?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are some people all over the country who are paying record rent right now. And they go up every year. I was talking to somebody a few days ago. Do you know what she told me? Her friend\u2019s rent went up by $500. Oh my gosh. Like, are you serious? So just not having to deal with that is worth it if you can afford it, as long as you’re settled. I tell people, as long as you’re settled, and you’re not going anywhere in the next two, three years, as long as you have the money, and as long as you have the mindset, go ahead and buy.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n For experienced buyers, I give them the same advice because it helps you build some fortune for yourself. Where else do you put your money? The stock market? And we all know how that is right now. There’s so much volatility in the stock market. You can keep it in your bank account. How much does that do for you? So I tell people if you have the money and as long as the numbers make sense, it’s always good to buy. Could be an investment property, or even maybe sell and buy a bigger home. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Obviously, there are some times when you have to watch. That’s why we look at the numbers whenever we make a decision to see if the numbers make sense. If they don’t make sense, I tell people, \u201cHey, just wait another year or wait six months.\u201d As far as refinancing, same thing. The biggest thing with refinancing is the price. So that question comes up a lot right now with the rates. Hey guys, where are these rates going? They keep going up. I tell people the most important thing is the price of the house because you can’t change that. You know, once you buy a house, six months, a year later, the rates go down, you know what? You can refinance. So that’s why the biggest thing is now the price of the home itself. <\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat to Know About the Housing Market in Phoenix<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What is the state of the current housing market in Phoenix? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
How is the housing market shifting? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Have you seen any local trends in and around Phoenix? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Do you have any tips for first-time homebuyers? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
And what about second-time buyers or people who are looking to refinance? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n