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Tag Archives: Real Estate Market
Downtown St. Pete's Coolest Looking Building Signature Place
61 units sold at Auction in 2 hours most selling for 40-45% above the starting bid. Who said downtown St. Pete wasn’t an exciting place?
The only remaing “B” floor plans units for sale are on 8th and 9th floor with none of these upgrades or view, this 20th floor “B” floor plan with 2 beds and 2 baths with 2 parking spaces and 1,447 sq ft is a incredible deal.
Signature place in downtown St. Petersburg is, in my opinion, one of the best looking buildings downtown. The location is perfect, water views, in the heart of the action for restaurants, shops, movies, grocery stores and best of all front row seats to the St. Pete Grand Prix!
This B floor plan has many custom features including an expanded master bedroom with wood floors and large flat panel TV, tile in the living, dining and kitchen upgrades, jetted tub in the master bedroom with walk-in shower, flat panel TV in the living room. 24 hour security, Community Heated Pool, Community Hot Tub/Spa, 2 Modern & Fully Equipped Hospitality Rooms, Fitness Center, Infinity Edge Pool, 6th Floor Outside Garden Deck, Private Cabanas, Storage, Pet Friendly. Maintenance Includes: Building Exterior, Cable, Escrow Reserves, LAWN, Manager, Recreational Facilities, Roof, Security, Trash Removal
We are setting up private showings now to view this custom unit. Call David Price with the Price Group at Coldwell Banker today!
Housing bargains abound, but try closing the deal quickly! Short Sales and pre-foreclosures are painful
If you are like many home buyers who are trying to break into the real estate market in Tampa Bay, you know there are some amazing deals out there. Homes that sold in 2005 for over $200,000 are now selling for $100,000 or less in some areas! This makes buying a home a lot of fun today, you would think!
Many buyers are frustrated, 70% of the homes sales in recent months in the Tampa Bay area are distressed properties, short sales and pre-foreclosures. Getting these homes closed it just too much for some buyers. Often by the time it takes to get a short sale or pre-foreclosures approved by the seller’s lender, 50% of the buyers have walked before getting lender approval.
Most short sale deals take at least four months or more to get approval from the seller’s bank and if they have a PMI or MI insurance, a second mortgage or HELOC you could be looking six to twelve months or not getting approved at all! After the seller gets the lenders approval, the seller than has to agree to the lenders terms of the short sale. Which could include them signing a note for the balance or bring cash to the closing table. If the seller isn’t willing or able to accept these terms the deal could be dead! The buyer is then out 4-6 months of waiting.
Adding to this, homes under $100,000 are now starting to see bidding wars. Buyers used have been able to think about a home overnight but these days you need to move quickly to snatch up a good deal!
Home sales in the Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater areas rose 28 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009, and the median sales price hit $138,800. That’s down 42 percent since prices peaked at $239,600 in June 2006.
Time is also running on federal tax credit for 1st time and move up home buyers, putting a short sale under contract at this point and getting it closed in time to meet the dead lines may not be possible. Buyer’s must be under contract by 4-30-10 and close no later than 6-30-10 to get the tax credit.
I’m telling my buyers at this point they need to make a decision, if the tax credit is the big reason they want to buy a home this year they many need to focus on REO (bank owned properties) or look for homes where the seller has equity so they can close in time.
If you don’t care about the tax credit, and you are focused on just getting the right home for you and your family as the market is returning from the bottom then short sales and pre-foreclosures should be on your list.
If you are looking for a newer community, taking the trip across the Skyway Bridge could get you more than you could dream of. I’ve been showing property in Manatee County over the past few weeks, where newer homes that were selling in the $500,000 range that can be purchased at a 50% discount. I’ve shown property built in 2005 with 4 beds 2.5 baths 2 car garage and 2,500 sqft selling for only $180k. Pulte Homes will build you a new 3,000 sqft home for just $212,000 WOW!
Let me know if I can help you with your home search!
Fannie Mae Approved Condo List Florida
Here is the updated list from Fannie Mae on PERS approved condos as of March 1st. There are a few additions to the list since December. If you remember, Fannie Mae has a task force dedicated to examining projects across the State to get them appoved. Once approved it allows us to do 80% financing on a conventional basis, for not only owner occupied buyers but 2nd home and investor buyers as well.
Click on this link “Fannie Mae Condo Approval 3-01-10”
Let me know if you have any questions.
John Fenech
Sunbelt Lending Services
Regional Loan Manager
Ph: 800-858-5674 or 727-827-1818
Fax: 856-917-2610
A year later, reality sets in on housing loan mods
About 116,000 homeowners have had their loans modified to reduce their monthly payments, the Treasury Department said Wednesday. Only about $15 million in incentive money has been paid to more than 100 participating mortgage companies. That’s 0.02 percent of the $75 billion available.
Unemployment soared to 10 percent, and home prices continued to fall, especially in some states. 16 million homeowners nationwide now owe more to the bank than their properties are worth, according to Moody’s Economy.com.
Low interest rates and tax incentives have boosted home sales, but are ending soon. The $1.25 trillion program created by the Federal Reserve that has helped keep rates low is scheduled to end next month. The tax credits run out on April 30.
Obama’s plan had two main strategies: The government would channel $75 billion to banks to prod them into modifying the terms of mortgages for up to 4 million borrowers by the end of 2012. It would also relax rules to let up to 5 million homeowners refinance at lower interest rates.
Under the modification plan, borrowers can get their mortgage rates reduced to as low as 2 percent for five years and have the term of their loan extended to as long as 40 years. Borrowers must make three payments on time before the modification becomes permanent. Monthly payments for borrowers in the program have fallen to a median of about $835, down by about $520 a month.
Since the program started in March:
• 1 million people have entered the modification program, and almost 12 percent, or 116,000, have completed the process.
• A third of homeowners who made the three monthly trial payments on time have now fallen behind.
• More than 61,000 homeowners have dropped out, and hundreds of thousands more are expected to do so in the coming months.
• About 220,000 homeowners whose homes have plummeted in value have refinanced.
The process has been time-consuming, bureaucratic and fraught with communication mistakes. Borrowers often feel lost in a maze. When denied by their bank, they often don’t get a clear explanation of why.
To qualify, borrowers need to provide two pay stubs and a letter describing the reason for their hardship. They must give the Internal Revenue Service permission to give out their tax returns to their mortgage company.
Faced with poor results last summer, the Obama administration pressured mortgage companies. Treasury officials summoned key executives from lenders, including Bank of America, Wells Fargo and JP Morgan Chase, to Washington. The industry was given strict orders: Sign up at least 500,000 borrowers by Nov. 1.
To meet that goal, most companies allowed homeowners to enroll in the program without proof of income. That was the same low standard that lenders used when they made some of the riskiest loans that fueled the housing frenzy.
Getting the documents in advance would have been a better idea, Heid said. That’s because lenders have struggled to get homeowners to complete all the required documentation. Many don’t comply, despite repeated phone calls, mailings and even in-person visits by notaries.
It’s a problem that has perplexed and frustrated industry executives. “Borrowers didn’t understand that if they didn’t send the documents in, they would fail to qualify,” said Sanjiv Das, Citigroup’s top mortgage executive.
Last month, the Obama administration made key changes. It reduced the paperwork requirements and announcing that homeowners will be required to provide proof of their incomes upfront starting June 1.
Market data for downtown St. Pete (zip codes 33701,33704,33713)
Click This Link To View: MLS Data for downtown Single family homes .pdf file
Market update:
Since the middle of 2009 the number of active listings have been holding steady at around 600 single family homes for sale.
Pending home sale had been seeing an improvement but for the past 6 months we have seen peaks and valleys.
Home sales have also been holding steady with a slight increase, until Jan 2010 when we saw a big drop in sales which is normal for our market.
Price per sqft is holding around $100-$110. Price per sqft is not a good rule of thumb as most of the homes in the downtown area are so unique and people buy by the block, interior finish and floor plan.
Average days on the market seem to be holding around 90 days, with a list price to sold price ratio of 93% this number is not based on its original list price, but the asking price when it went under contract.
Average list price is in the high $300k with the average sales price of only $160k.
Months of inventory had been holding steady until Jan 2010 when it spiked to 16.2 month, this was because the low number of sales in Jan 2010. This number will go back down to at least 9 months when the Feb 2010 numbers come out. Six (6) months is an even market not a buyers market and not a sellers market. We should see this number by the end of 2010 if we can get more people back to work.
Considering selling your home? call me I’d be happy to run some comps for you.
FHA to provide early relief to struggling homeowners
WASHINGTON – Jan. 25, 2010 – At-risk homeowners with FHA-insured mortgage loans are now eligible for loss mitigation assistance before they fall behind on their mortgage payments. Previously, homeowners weren’t eligible until they missed payments.
The Helping Families Save Their Home Act of 2009 expanded FHA’s authority to use its loss mitigation tools to assist FHA borrowers avoid foreclosure, including those facing “imminent default” as defined by the Secretary.
“Loss mitigation assistance is beneficial to both borrowers and FHA because it helps borrowers retain their homes while protecting the FHA insurance fund from unnecessary losses,” says FHA Commissioner David Stevens. “Now servicers will have additional options for those borrowers who seek help before they go delinquent.”
The change is effective immediately under FHA’s Home Affordable Modification Program (FHA-HAMP) (http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/nsc/rep/hampfact.pdf) with the following rules:
• FHA defines “FHA borrower facing imminent default” to be current or less than 30 days past due on the mortgage obligation and experiencing a significant reduction in income or some other hardship that will prevent him or her from making the next required payment on the mortgage.
• A forbearance agreement allows the loan servicer to postpone, reduce or suspend payments due on a loan for a limited and specific time period.
• FHA-HAMP allows qualified FHA-insured borrowers to reduce their monthly mortgage payment to an affordable level by permanently reducing the payment through the use of a partial claim combined with a loan modification. The partial claim defers the repayment of a portion of the mortgage principal through an interest-free subordinate mortgage that is not due until the first mortgage is paid off. The remaining balance is then modified through re-amortization and, in some cases, an interest rate reduction.
The borrower must be able to document the cause of an imminent default, which may include, but is not limited to, one or more of the following types of hardship:
1. A reduction in or loss of income that was supporting the mortgage loan, e.g., unemployment, reduced job hours, reduced pay, or a decline in self-employed business earnings. A scheduled temporary shutdown of the employer, (such as for a scheduled vacation), would not in and of itself be adequate to support an imminent default.
2. A change in household financial circumstances, e.g., death in family, serious or chronic illness, permanent or short-term disability.
Loan servicers must document the basis for its determination that a payment default is imminent and retain all documentation used to reach its conclusion. The servicer’s documentation must also include information on the borrower’s financial condition.
Additional information and guidance can be found on HUD’s website. (www.hud.gov).
Want to Invest in Real Estate? 7 Questions You Must Ask Yourself Before You Buy
You’ve heard that investing in real estate can be very lucrative. Before you get started, here are seven questions to ask yourself.
1. Is this a hobby or a business?
Ask yourself why you want to invest in real estate.
-Do you want another income stream
-Do you want to build equity in a house
-How many sellers and buyers do you want to speak with each day/week/month
-How much time do you have to invest in real estate
-Are you working a full time job
-Are you retired looking for additional income
-What do you want to do with your time?
If you want to build a real estate investing business, then you need to treat it like a business.
Are you going to be a landlord? Then you need to determine how much time you want to spend collecting rent, maintaining the property, making repairs, answering tenant calls late at night, etc.
Or have a property management company handle the tenants and maintenance? Then you need to determine who you will hire to manage your property and how much you will pay them. Typically a property management company will charge one months rent to locate a tenant and then charge 8%-10% of the monthly rent for collecting the rent and answering all calls from the tenant. You still need to set aside a reserve fund for maintenance.
Maybe you don’t want to be a landlord and you want to wholesale property. Then you need to develop a buyer’s list of buyers who have the cash to purchase the house. You will still need to work with sellers to locate properties, get it under contract. You then need to get your wholesale buyer to sign the assignment of contract. And you have to make sure you follow up with the closing agent to make sure the deal is funded by the wholesale buyer and the deal closes. You will get your assignment fee once the deal closes.
Here are the questions you need to ask yourself.
-Do you want to be a landlord
-How much time do you want to put into real estate investing
-Do you want to build a business or just make some extra money once in a while
2. Do you want to work directly with sellers?
There are many investors who want to get into the real estate investing business who don’ t have prior sales experience. Yes, you can call homeowners directly and negotiate the purchase of their home, it is possible. It’s even easier when you are speaking with a motivated seller. I mean a seller that is really motivated to sell, not someone who wants to sell, wants full price for their home and just doesn’t want to wait for the all cash buyer that will pay retail price.
Are you someone that wants to help these motivated sellers? Do you have it in you to hear their stories over and over? Some of these sellers will break your heart and you will want to help them. You have to make sure that you only work with those that you can help and make a profit for yourself. Just because someone is willing to deed you their house does not mean it is a good deal.
Think about a situation where the seller has two mortgages, judgments, and liens on the property. Yes, you can work this as a short sale and get the liens removed and negotiate with the lender to get a smaller settlement for the payoff of the mortgage. You need to decide if you want to put in the time and effort it takes to negotiate the short sale and get the liens removed. I have seen investors in the short sale negotiation process with the lender for anywhere from 2 months to 18 months. Do you want wait months to close the deal?
You need to decide if you want to work directly with homeowners or have someone handle this for you.
3. Do you want to work directly with buyers?
Once you have a house under contract, it is time for you to find your buyer. The best thing you can do is to build a buyers list before you have a property. Find out where the buyers want to live, and then go find a house in that area. It is much easier to find a house for a buyer than it is to find a buyer for a house.
Do you want to take calls from the buyers? They call at all hours, while you are having dinner, before you wake up in the morning, when you are driving to work, etc. Are you willing to drop everything you are doing to take a call from a buyer?
4. Where are you going to get the money?
This is one of the biggest concerns of all real estate investors, where to get the money.
Yes, you can buy a house with little of your own money. Some of the techniques to do this are:
-Buy the house subject-to the existing mortgage
-Have the seller carryback the financing in the form of a note
-Lease/Option the house
You can also build relationships with other people who have money, such as
-Private lenders
-Hard Money Lenders
-Mortgage Brokers
The biggest money concern that you never hear about is where to get the money to market your business. You can buy a house subject-to the existing mortgage. But how do you find that house? You have to continue to MARKET, MARKET, MARKET.
Marketing costs money. That is what most of the gurus forget to tell you. You hear all about how you can buy a house with no money down or little money down. What they don’t tell you is that you have to spend money on marketing to find the house, and money on marketing to find the buyer.
Before you get started, put together a marketing plan so you know how much money you need to get started.
5. Do you want chunks of cash or cash flow?
What is the reason you want to invest in real estate? Are you interested in getting chunks of cash? Cash Flow? Or Both?
What you want out of real estate investing will help you determine what type of real estate investing you want to get into.
If you are looking for chunks of cash, you have a couple of choices. Consider wholesaling or rehabbing (fix and flip).
If you are looking for cash flow, consider landlording, selling a home with seller financing, or be a private lender.
6. Where do you want to invest?
Many investors will start out in their local market because they are familiar with it and they already have some relationships in the area. It’s easiest to start local since you are familiar with house values and have access to local experts to answer your questions.
7. What is your plan to learn more about RE investing?
The most successful real estate investors are those who keep up with the changes in the industry and are constantly learning new techniques.
One of the best things you can do is find a local mentor, someone who is making money investing in your local market. Ideally they should be investing in the area that you are interested in. If you want to wholesale properties, find a local investor who is wholesaling properties. Not only will you ask them to mentor you, but they may buy some of your properties from you.
If you are interested in commercial real estate, then you shouldn’t spend your time with an investor who deals only with single family homes.
Always continue to learn about Real estate investing. There are many gurus that travel the country teaching real estate investing. Ask the people at your REIA whose products they have purchased and whether or not it helped them in their business.
First determine the niche you want to work to get started. Learn everything you can about that specific niche and create income in that niche before you move on to the next niche. Don’t get distracted by the “shiny ball” syndrome.
Real Estate investing can be very lucrative. You need to create a plan, continue to educate yourself, and continue to market for sellers and buyers.
When you have a game plan, call me so we can setup a search and study the market to pick the best deals!
What does the tax credit mean to you?
A Great Deal in Real Estate is Now Better
ote: This is intended to provide an overview only – for specific information or individual concerns, please contact your lawyer, accountant and/or financial advisor.
The federal income tax credit for homebuyers has been extended and expanded to now include homeowners who wish to “move on” after 5 years of living in their current property, as well as first-time homebuyers.
First-time homebuyers, or those who have not owned in the last three years, can receive up to an $8,000 tax credit
Homeowners who have lived in a current home consecutively for 5 of the past 8 years can receive up to a $6,500 tax credit
There may be no future extensions, so all qualified homebuyers are urged to act and have a written, binding contract by April 30, 2010 (close by June 30, 2010)
Income limits are now $125,000 for singles, $225,000 for married couples with a $20,000 phase-out of the credit for both.
According to The National Association of Realtors News Release, dated 11/5/09, an estimated $22 billion has already been added to the general economy resulting from the bill and approximately 2 million people will utilize the tax credit in 2009.
For me information call The Price Group today!
Foreclosure filings fall 8% in November
WASHINGTON (AP) – Dec. 10, 2009 – The number of homeowners on the brink of foreclosure fell in November, the fourth straight monthly decline, as mortgage companies evaluated whether borrowers were eligible for help.
Nearly 307,000 households, or one in every 417 homes, received a foreclosure-related notice in November, down 8 percent from a month earlier, RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday. Banks repossessed about 77,000 homes last month, down slightly from October.
Millions of borrowers are still being evaluated for the Obama administration’s foreclosure prevention effort. States are also trying to delay the foreclosure process, temporarily lowering foreclosure numbers.
But the foreclosure crisis is likely to get worse before it gets better.
“We don’t really believe the underlying problems have been resolved,” said Rick Sharga, senior vice president at the Irvine, Calif.-based foreclosure listing service. Many borrowers, he said, “simply aren’t going to qualify” for help.
Foreclosure filings were still up 18 percent from a year ago, and a new wave is expected next year as unemployment remains high and borrowers fall out of loan modification programs.
Nevada posted the nation’s highest foreclosure rate, followed by Florida, California, Arizona and Idaho. Rounding out the top 10 were Michigan, Illinois, Utah, Maryland and New Jersey.
Among cities, Merced, Calif. had the highest rate, with one in 83 homes receiving a foreclosure filing. It was followed by fellow California cities Stockton and Modesto, and Cape-Coral-Fort Myers, Fla.
Las Vegas, which had been No. 1 on that list for four-straight months, fell to No. 5. Nevada recently adopted a program that requires mediation before banks can seize a property.
Nationwide, a report Wednesday showed only about 10,000 homeowners received permanent loan modifications this fall under the Obama administration’s mortgage relief plan, more evidence of serious failings in the government’s effort.
Elizabeth Warren, chair of a watchdog panel, told reporters that the program is “not working” and that it had failed to make a dent in the record level of foreclosures. More than 14 percent of homeowners with a mortgage are either late on their payments or in foreclosure, and that number is expected to keep rising as unemployment remains stubbornly high.
The Treasury Department is expected to release updated figures Thursday, but data through October showed that fewer than 5 percent of homeowners who completed the trial periods had their mortgage payments permanently lowered to more affordable levels.
Under the program, eligible borrowers who are behind or at risk of default can have their mortgage interest rate reduced to as low as 2 percent for five years. They are given temporary modifications, which are supposed to become permanent after borrowers make three payments on time and complete the required paperwork, including proof of income and a hardship letter.