From WNBC-TVNEW YORK CITY -- Economists predict the recession will be over by year's end and according to Neil Weinberg of Forbes Magazine, so will the bargains.
He says, "We've had an unprecedented collapse in the stock market, collapse in consumer spending, so you've got a lot of stuff on the shelves...right now a great time to buy if you've got money in your pockets."
Among the top ten deals of this recession, homes are at the top of the list.
"We've seen the price of homes decline like they haven't declined since the Great Depression," says Weinberg.
The second hottest bargain are cars. Brand-new cars have been sitting at shipping ports around the country because demand was so low. The country went from selling 16 to 17 million cars a year to below 10 million.
Chris Mignano, Toyota of Manhattan General Sales Manager, says, "Since September 11 where we started to see these incentives they did not last as long and they didn't go as deep into every model that Toyota offers. It's definitely the best time to buy right now."
Diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but they are also more wallet friendly than ever, costing 11 percent less on average. Henry Barguirdjian, president of Graff Diamonds, says while high-end jewels like a rare 16.5-karat yellow diamond that costs 5 million dollars haven't dropped in price, investing in the finest jewels can be better than putting your money in stocks.
"In the past 30 years the price of diamonds virtually never went down. At worst it stayed flat or went up. In the past five years it went up over 300 percent because of the global economy and the build up of new fortunes around the world," says Barguirdjian
Other bargains include vacations, children's toys, laptops, flat screen TVs, furniture, woman's clothing, and high-dividend stocks.
"Clearly the deals will diminish and that's why if this is something you can buy now and use for 10 years it's probably a good time to get in," says Weinberg.
