Housing Now a Bad Buy, Savings Executive Warns
'NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 12ÛÓThis is not ai good time to buy a house because prices probably have peaked and mortgage interest rates are exorbitant, Saul B. Klaman, president of the National Association of Savings Banks, said today.</br></br>But some of the members of the National Association of Realtors disagreed at their convention here, warning that buyers cannot expect the usual rate of appreciation in the months ahead.</br></br>Û÷Û÷ItÛªs certainly OK to buy now to acquire a place to live where you want to live, but buying more space than you 'need in a remote area doesnÛªt seem to make any sense today just to fulfill an ego need,Û said David B. Doelman of Portland, Ore., at a press conference.</br></br>DoelmanÛªs view was supported by Ralph W. Pritchard, incoming president of the Association, who insisted housing prices will rise in the 1980s because of the current stifling of housing construction and demand.</br></br>Claudia Chappel of Bethany, OklaÛ÷, said that if interest rates come down, demand will increase and prices will go up sharply. ÛÏThe best time to buy always is two years ago but nobody ever can do that,Û she added with a smile.