I've saved for some big purchases, is now the time to buy them?

[Christophercarl]

With how much more affordable things are becoming is now the time to make those planned purchases that we have been saving for? (i.e. house, car)

Everything seems to be so much cheaper than it has been in the past few years. Have we not reached the bottom and should we wait a little longer or doesn't it even matter?

[disneysteve]

You should buy a house or buy a car when you need them and are financially ready to buy them. I don't think market conditions really should have much influence.

We bought our house after I was settled in a new job and we needed to be closer to my office.

We bought our last car when the previous one was wrecked in an accident, and that one was bought after the one before it was destroyed by a fire.

So if you have determined that you need a house or car and have saved up the money needed to buy them, go ahead and do so. Whether or not the market has hit bottom really shouldn't matter. Yes, you might get an even better deal if you wait, but if you can wait, then perhaps you don't really need to be buying them.

[moneybags]

If I were in the market for a used item (car, furniture, etc.) now & had the money, I would make the purchase. People that need to get rid of this stuff are selling for cheap.

[Fern]

If you are first-time homebuyers and don't have to worry about selling your existing house, this is a wonderful time to buy, if those were your plans. There's a huge inventory out there and lots of sellers willing to negotiate.

As for the car, i guess i'd want to know why you want to buy a new one. Buying a new car is almost always going to be more costly than repairing the existing one unless the one you have is a gas guzzling heap of junk with terminal problems.

If you're planning to finance the new car, remember that you will have to have pretty good credit to secure financing, as lenders are still jittery about loans. If you haven't done so already, i would check your credit score to see where you stand; there are things you can do to improve your credit, which in turn will help you get more favorable financing deals with a lower interest rate.

[GrimJack]

Deflation happens when people put off buying something because it might be cheaper later; inflation is when everyone wants something right now and compete for it (granted this is really simplified) and these decisions ricochet around economy. If you are ready for it, buy the house or car and do not worry about 'timing' - just like investing, you really can't time the market.

[amarowsky]

im in the market for a house now, things in my area are on average 30-50% of what they were 2-4 years ago.

[Aleta]

Your question reminds me of when to buy mutual funds, stocks, or bonds. We don't know when it is going to bottom out. But, consistently buying each month (dollar cost averaging will give you the prices at the time.

I ditto everything that Steve said about the house. If you are ready to buy, buy it. There are alot of great deals out there and alot of negotiating going on. This situation won't last forever and you don't want to buy when the prices are up either.

[Christophercarl]

Thanks everyone for all of the advice. It is very tempting right now to go out and make some big purchases because of the "great deals" that are available. I suppose those aren't going away any time soon though.