Credit market where it should be.

How is the credit crunch affecting the real estate market? Can you sell a house now with everything going on in the U.S. economy? Can you buy a house now with this unbelievable economic crisis?

The answer is yes. Homes are selling, and buyers are getting financing. Florida had the highest rate of FHA mortgages recently in the United States. Home loans are available. The clock has now turned back to the way things should be . . . that is, those people who have good credit and verifiable income can secure financing to purchase a home.

Those people who have decided to "short sale" or go into foreclosure have now made a choice that they have to live with. Those who made the choice to sell short or foreclose will not be able to secure mortgages again for many years. Each circumstance for foreclosure and short sales is different, but the lending institutions will now make decisions not to lend to these people regardless of circumstances.

Veterans can secure VA financing with no money down. FHA buyers can purchase with 3 percent or less down. Conventional financing is available for those who can afford a down payment and finance 80 percent loans. Money is available. Credit is available. All are available to those who can afford to purchase and to those who can afford the payments.

This is not a bad change in the market. This is the way the real estate and lending market should be. We all need to tighten our belts and think before we purchase. We need to make certain that we can afford to pay back the money that we borrow.

There is no more incredible leverage -- based on rocketing home values -- available to the consumer. The rules have changed but the good news is that we can purchase a home, we just must be able to "afford" that purchase. Homes are the most affordable than they have been in many, many years. Interest rates are low and reasonable. There is an abundance of properties to from which to choose.

In spite of what you are reading in the newspaper and in spite of what you are seeing on television, real estate is alive and well in Brevard County, in Florida and throughout the United States. This is the time to buy the American Dream.