Most of us put important things off. Procrastinating homebuyers were rewarded for waiting with decreasing interest rates and lower home prices until last year. However, going forward, you may pay a hefty price for delaying your home purchase.

The price will be in the form of a higher payment for the same house or making the same payment for a less-desirable home. Additionally, the market will become more chaotic and your options will become more limited. In my 35 years helping homebuyers, I’ve observed that most buyers stay on the fence too long and end up regretting it.

Most homebuyers, like humans in general, are not comfortable making major financial commitments if the general population is not doing the same. It’s more comfortable to operate within the “herd” than go against it. In the past, I’ve seen buyers getting off the fence all at once after the end of a market downturn became evident. That created a big increase in the demand for homes. There has been a small increase in new home construction recently but not enough to satisfy the pent-up demand. This will result in more buyers chasing fewer homes, causing prices to go up because of shrinking inventory.

The government has artificially kept rates low for the past few years. The low point was reached last year. Since then, rates have risen a full percentage point. The Federal Reserve has indicated it intends to gradually end its quantitative easing policy that has supported low rates. Experts are predicting that rates will increase by 1 percentage point or more next year.

What does that mean for you? If you could afford the payment on a $250,000 home in late 2012, you could only pay $221,000 today. If rates go up another percentage point, your maximum purchase price would drop to $198,000. You’ve already lost $29,000 in purchasing power and could lose another $23,000 by next year.

Additionally, median prices in the combined Durango and Bayfield areas went from $302,000 in 2012 to $326,300 in 2013, a $24,300 or 8 percent increase. The upward trend is projected to continue. So on-the-fence buyers have and will be hit with the double “whammy” of higher prices and decreasing purchasing power. So by next year, a home that you could buy for $250,000 in late 2012, may cost $290,000 later this year; If rates go up another 1 percent, the payment on the same home will increase $472 a month or 47 percent.

Many prospective homebuyers mistakenly believe they cannot qualify for financing or need a larger down payment than is actually necessary. I recommend that if you think home-ownership is right for you in the future, you meet with a broker specializing in buyer representation to review all your options.

Steve Setka is an exclusive buyer’s agent with Keller Williams Realty in Durango and a licensed mortgage originator. He can be reached at 903-7782 or steve@durangore.net.