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WHERE ARE THE GREATER TAMPA AREA REAL ESTATE DEALS ????

May 25, 2012 at 4:17 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

The Greater Tampa Area Real Estate Market is forecasted to gain a 7.4% price increase in 2012! According to the predictions, Tampa is now number 6 in the U.S. to see positive growth and stability in our housing market.

The significant change in our market can be a result of several factors, including being hit especially hard in the downturn. You’ve heard the old saying “what goes up must come down” well we experienced that in this housing boom-bust now the saying is “what goes down must come back up?” We have a solid year of pricing that has continued to increase, so it’s safe to say the forecast is bright and the trend is upward.

The facts are in from the latest Greater Tampa Association of Realtors Report:

January 2011 in the Greater Tampa Bay area had an average sales price of almost $135,000. 00. The latest report released in December, shows that our average sales price is now just over $159,000.00. So you don’t have to get out your calculator, that’s a $24,000.00 increase in sales prices in 1 year.
Our inventory went from 11.2 months to 5.3 months in the same time period.

I’m still getting the calls saying ”I want to buy a million $ home for 200K I suspect the “dreamers” will be dwindling down just like our inventory. Maybe they haven’t read the news? Maybe people have been so accustomed to the bad news, that they just haven’t caught up with reality. You may want to buy a home for half of what the list price is, but that home is already 50%-60% on average below what it was t the peak of the housing boom and statistics show homes are selling for only 5% below list price on average.

So if YOU want that bargain and not miss the opportunity to purchase in the Greater Tampa Area NOW is the time. If you miss this opportunity you could become a memeber in the coulda, woulda, shoulda club.

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Fla.’s housing market continues positive signs in April 2012

May 24, 2012 at 1:48 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

ORLANDO, Fla. – May 22, 2012 – Florida’s housing market had increased pending sales and higher median prices in April, along with a greatly reduced inventory of homes and condos for sale, according to Florida Realtors® latest housing data.
“Here in Florida, we’re seeing some strong numbers that show positive momentum for the state’s housing recovery and our economy,” said 2012 Florida Realtors President Summer Greene, regional manager of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Florida 1st in Fort Lauderdale. “Home prices continue to rise in many markets. Inventory is down to extremely low levels while pending sales are on the rise – almost 38 percent for single-family homes and 25 percent for townhomes and condos. It is not unusual to see multiple offers.
“Now the challenge will be for appraisals to catch up. Overall, we are very happy to see the market move in this direction and expect this trend to continue.”
Pending sales refer to contracts that are signed but not yet completed or closed; closed sales typically occur 30 to 90 days after sales contracts are written.
The statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes in April was $144,350, up 10.2 percent from the year-ago figure, according to data from Florida Realtors Industry Data and Analysis department, and vendor partner 10K Research and Marketing. The statewide median for townhome-condo properties was $108,000, up 16.1 percent over April 2011.
The national median sales price for existing single-family homes in March 2012 was $163,600, up 1.9 percent from the previous year, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). In California, the statewide median sales price for single-family existing homes in March was $291,080; in Massachusetts, it was $267,500; in Maryland, it was $225,601; and in New York, it was $215,000.
The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less. Housing industry analysts note that sales of foreclosures and other distressed properties continue to downwardly distort the median price because they generally sell at a discount relative to traditional homes.
Statewide sales of existing single-family homes totaled 17,544 in April, down slightly, 0.7 percent, compared to the year-ago figure. Looking at Florida’s year-to-year comparison for sales of townhomes/condos, a total of 9,765 units sold statewide last month, down 4.9 percent from those sold in April 2011. NAR reported the national median existing condo price in March 2012 was $165,200.
In April, there was a 5.8-month supply of single-family homes in inventory and a 5.7-month supply for townhomes/condos, according to Florida Realtors.
“The housing numbers for the state of Florida continue to signal recovery,” said Florida Realtors Chief Economist Dr. John Tuccillo. “Sales in 2012 are above where they were in 2011, a harbinger of a third straight year of improvement. More importantly, pending sales are up dramatically, and inventory is still falling. Financing constraints still mean that a significant percentage of these will not lead to closed sales, but with the numbers up, we are confident that closed sales will continue to rise.
“The increase in both median and average prices suggests that investors are having a strong impact on the market, soaking up lower priced inventory and causing buyers to move up the price ladder.”
The interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.91 percent in April 2012, down from the 4.84 percent average during the same month a year earlier, according to Freddie Mac.
To see the full statewide housing activity report, go to Florida Realtors website at www.floridarealtors.org, and click on the Research page; then look under Latest Housing Data, Statewide Residential Activity and get the April report. Or go to Florida Realtors Media Center at http://media.floridarealtors.org/ and download the April 2012 data report PDF under Market Data at: http://media.floridarealtors.org/market-data.
© 2012 Florida Realtors®

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U.S. Housing Market Finally Reaches A Turning Point – Home values will start to climb again

May 23, 2012 at 7:54 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Some of us wake up each morning in a “charming and intimate” studio apartment (as a real estate agent might describe it) while others begin the day in a mansion. Either way, our homes are where we spend time with family and friends. We cook meals together, watch our favorite television shows, surf the Internet, and enjoy our hobbies. At night we can rest after a long day at work or school.

For many Americans their home is also their most valuable financial asset. But recently this has proved to be a rather volatile asset, and dramatic changes in home values have created stress for many Americans.

The Shifting Nature of U.S. Housing Demand is the first major publication from The Demand Institute. The trajectory of the housing market has now reached a true turning point. Based on our team’s analysis, the worst of the housing crash is over and a recovery has now started.

Yet this recovery will be very different from previous ones…………………….. click here to get your FREE report

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U.S. Housing Market Finally Reaches A Turning Point – Get Free Report Here

May 16, 2012 at 9:59 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

NEW YORK – May 16, 2012 – Home values will start to climb again and related consumer industries will grow in 2012 and beyond as the U.S. housing market finally turns the corner, according to a new study released today by The Demand Institute, a new nonprofit, non-advocacy group formed in February by The Conference Board and Nielsen.
According to the Institute, the housing market recovery will have “far-reaching impacts in the coming years across the United States and international markets as U.S. consumers increase their spending on buying, renovating, furnishing and maintaining their homes.”
It also won’t be like earlier recoveries, the Institute suggests, with homestead owners leading the way. Instead, real estate investors buying rentals will supply the homebuying demand.
The Institute’s report, click to get your free copy The Shifting Nature of U.S. Housing Demand, compliments of Castle Dream Real Estate, LLC, your Florida real estate company, predicts that average home prices will increase by up to 1 percent in the second half of 2012. By 2014, home prices will increase by as much as 2.5 percent.
From 2015 to 2017, the study projects annual increases between 3 and 4 percent, though unevenly nationwide. The strongest markets “could capture average gains of 5 percent or more in the coming years.”
“In these initial years, the prime driver of recovery won’t be new home construction, but rather demand for rental properties,” says Louise Keely, chief research officer at The Demand Institute and a co-author of the report. “This is a remarkable change from previous recoveries. It is a measure of just how severe the Great Recession has been that such a wide swath of Americans had to delay, scale back, or put off entirely their dreams of homeownership.”
Bart van Ark, chief economist at The Conference Board and co-author of the report, says he doesn’t expect to see the homeownership rate to change.
“Over 80 percent of Americans in recent surveys still agree that buying a home is the best long-term investment they can make,” van Ark says. “What will be intriguing to watch is how their aspirations around homeownership are affected by this period of extended austerity.”
Between 2006 and 2011, some $7 trillion in American wealth was wiped out when home prices dropped 30 percent after dramatic climb in valuations during the housing bubble. Looking forward, the moderate growth expectations for coming years suggest a return to normalcy. As home prices continue to drop and interest rates fall further, first-time buyers and others who remained relatively cautious will be drawn back into the housing market. And, as the market recovers, so too will consumer spending.
“As the U.S. housing market strengthens, almost every consumer-facing industry will be impacted in the coming years,” said Mark Leiter, chairman of The Demand Institute. “Business and government leaders will benefit by fully understanding the nature of this recovery. In doing so they will be better able to anticipate how consumer demand will evolve, and to formulate critical business and policy decisions to lead their organizations.”

Key findings
In addition to the projected gains in home prices, the report discusses in detail the dynamics at work in the U.S. housing market and the impacts across industries. What follows are highlights from the report:
• The recovery will be led by demand from buyers for rental properties, rather than, as in previous cycles, demand from buyers acquiring new or existing properties for themselves. More than 50 percent of those planning to move in the next two years say they intend to rent.
• Young people and immigrants will lead the demand for rental properties. Developers and investors will fulfill it: developers by building multifamily homes for rent, and investors by buying foreclosed single-family properties for the same purpose.
• Rental demand will help clear the huge oversupply of existing homes for sale. In 2011, some 14 percent of all housing units were vacant, while almost 13 percent of mortgages were in foreclosure or delinquent – increases of 12 and 129 percent respectively over 2005 levels. It will take two to three years for this oversupply to be cleared, and at that point homeownership rates will rise and return to historical levels.
• The housing market recovery will not be uniform. Some states will see annual price gains of 5 percent or more. Others will not recover for many years. The deciding factors will include the level of foreclosed inventory and rates of unemployment.
• There will also be vast differences within states. Here, additional factors count, such as whether local amenities, including access to public transport, are within walking distance of homes. The report looks at seven factors and then sorts cities and towns into four categories, with each category predicting the speed of a local home price recovery.
• The average size of the American home will shrink. Many baby boomers who delayed retirement for financial reasons during the recession will downsize. They will not be alone. Most Americans will scale back their housing aspirations. The size of an average new home is expected to continue to fall, reaching mid-1990s levels by 2015.
• Consumer industries including financial services, home furnishings and home remodeling will experience shifts in demand and new growth opportunities. Part of this spending is linked to increases in wealth from improving home valuations, while an even bigger part is tied to the “transaction” of buying or selling the home which sets in motion increased demand for a wide range of products and services.
• Despite the number of Americans who have been hurt financially by the housing crash, the desire to own a home remains strong. The Institute doesn’t expect to see a long-term drop in ownership rates.

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Florida In Top Five For Home Price Appreciation

May 11, 2012 at 4:55 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

NEW YORK – May 10, 2012 – Tighter housing inventories are starting to lift home prices, says Anand Nallathambi, CoreLogic’s CEO. CoreLogic’s latest home price index, which includes distressed sales, shows a slight month-over-month nationwide increase of 0.6 percent in home prices from February to March. But some markets are seeing much more of a price boost this spring, including Florida, which ranked No. 5 overall for home price increases.
“This spring, the housing market is responding to an improving balance between real estate supply and demand, which is causing stabilization in house prices,” says Mark Fleming, CoreLogic’s chief economist. “Although this has been the case in each of the last two years, the difference this year is that stabilization is occurring without the support of tax credits and in spite of a declining share of REO sales.”

States with highest appreciation
According to CoreLogic, the following states had the highest appreciation in March (this includes distressed sales):
• Wyoming: +5.9%

• West Virginia: +5.3%

• Arizona: +5.1%

• North Dakota: +4.7%

• Florida: +4.5%

States with biggest depreciation
Meanwhile, the states with the greatest depreciation, when also figuring in distressed sales, are:
• Delaware: -10.6%

• Illinois: -8.3%

• Alabama: -8%

• Georgia: -7.3%

• Nevada: -5.8%

Source: Melissa Dittmann Tracey, Realtor® Magazine Daily News

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6 Worth-the-Price Fix-Ups

May 10, 2012 at 11:42 am | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Simple and affordable do-it-yourself projects can greatly increase a home’s resale value, according to HomeGain’s annual home improvement and staging survey.

The marketing company surveyed nearly 600 real estate professionals to discover which DIY home improvement projects give sellers the biggest return for their buck. Here are six projects under $1,000 (amounts are estimated) that made the list.

Cleaning and decluttering.Remove any personal items, unclutter countertops, organize closets and shelves, and make the home sparkling clean.
- $290 Cost
- $1,990 Return
Brightening.Clean all windows inside and out, replace old curtains, update lighting fixtures, and remove anything that blocks light from the windows.
- $375 Cost
- $1,550 Return
Smart staging.Rearrange furniture, bring in new accessories and furnishings to enhance rooms, incorporate artwork, and play soft music in the background.
- $550 Cost
- $2,194 Return
Landscaping enhancements.Punch up the home’s curb appeal in the front and back yards by adding bark mulch, bushes, and flowers and ensuring current plants and grass are well-cared for and manicured.
- $540 Cost
- $1,932 return
Repairing electrical or plumbing.Fix leaks under the sinks, remove any mildew stains, and ensure all plumbing is in good working condition. Update the home’s electrical with new wiring for modern appliances, fix any lights or outlets that don’t work, and replace old plug points with new safety fixtures.
- $535 Cost
- $1,505 Return
Replacing or shampooing dirty carpets.Steam-clean carpets, replace any worn carpets, and repair any floor creaks.
- $647 Cost
- $1,739 Return

Excerpted from HomeGain’s 2011 Home Sale Maximizer Survey:

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Bidding Wars Catch Buyers Off-Guard

May 9, 2012 at 6:12 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Home buyers are unexpectedly finding more competition this spring in landing their dream home. Bidding wars are increasingly being reported in markets across the country, from California to Florida, The Wall Street Journal reports. “It’s a little surprising because we thought bidding wars were done with,” Andy Aley, a home shopper in Seattle, told The Wall Street Journal. Aley says he was outbid on a home earlier this year, even though he offered to pay $23,000 above the listing price and also waive inspections and other closing conditions. Home buyers are frustrated and caught off-guard about the bidding wars re-emerging, real estate professionals report. “We’re writing a record number of offers, but we’re not seeing a record number of closings and that’s because it’s so competitive,” Glenn Kelman, chief executive of Redfin Corp., told The Wall Street Journal. Why are things getting so competitive? Many housing markets are seeing a drastic decrease in the number of homes listed for-sale, leaving home buyers with fewer options and more bidding on the same house. Housing analysts say the shortage in supply is from sellers unwilling to take much less for their home than what they originally paid for it and pulling their homes off the market. Also, a surge in investors has made the market more competitive, as investors snatch up homes in bulk in all-cash deals. “The bidding wars caused by tight inventory provide the latest evidence that housing demand is starting to pick up after a six-year-long slump,” The Wall Street Journal reports.

Source: “Stunned Home Buyers Find the Bidding Wars Are Back,” The Wall Street Journal (April 27, 2012)

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Is Housing as Cheap as It’ll Ever Get?

May 8, 2012 at 7:47 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Home buyers who want a bargain may want to act now because the housing market is in the midst of a turnaround, economists say.

Home prices have fallen and mortgage rates are hovering near record lows, pushing home affordability for the average family to record highs. Meanwhile, rents have been on the rise, making owning a home cheaper than renting in most areas of the country, according to recent surveys.

But the housing deals aren’t expected to stick around much longer.

An improving job market, a decrease in the number of home owners falling behind on their mortgage, and an anticipated improvement in access to mortgages is expected to help home prices start bouncing back by next year, economists say.

Investors eyeing profits in rentals also have been snapping up bank-owned properties, which Clear Capital’s Alex Villacorte attributes as helping to lead to an incresae in prices on foreclosed properties. This “could have a significant impact on the market overall in terms of providing a rising floor to home values,” Villacorte told CNNMoney.

Some areas are already seeing prices rise. In Phoenix, housing prices have already increased 8.4 percent during the three months ending April 30, and Miami saw prices bump up 4.6 percent quarter over quarter, according to Clear Capital data.

“Stuff I was selling six months ago for $60,000 to $80,000 is now $90,000 to $110,000,” Tanya Marchiol, founder of Team Investments in Phoenix, told CNNMoney.

Loan Rates, Demand Predictions

Buyers may want to act more quickly because mortgage rates are expected to tick up slightly by the end of the year. The increase is being sparked by greater demand, says Doug Lebda, CEO of LendingTree. He predicts 30-year fixed-rate mortgages will inch up to 4.5 percent by the end of the year, which is still low, however, by historical standards.

The Mortgage Bankers Association is also predicting a big leap in mortgage loans next year. For this year, MBA estimates that buyers will take out loans totaling about $415 billion, but by 2013 that number is expected to nearly double to $706 billion.

Source: “Buying a Home Won’t get Much Cheaper,” CNNMoney (May 3, 2012) and “Time To Trade The Lease For A Mortgage?” NPR (May 1, 2012)

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Fannie, Freddie To Make Short Sales Faster

May 3, 2012 at 7:27 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

PHILADELPHIA – May 3, 2012 – Government-backed housing giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are adopting new guidelines to streamline the process for short sales, which most real estate observers expect will outpace foreclosures in the coming year.

The guidelines, required by the Federal Housing Finance Agency and effective June 15, would require servicers of mortgages backed by Freddie and Fannie to review and respond to requests for short sales within 30 calendar days of receipt of a buyer’s offer.

A short sale is a transaction in which a lender agrees to accept less than the amount owed on the mortgage. It is a “strategic default,” designed to get a borrower out of financial trouble without having to go through the drawn-out legal tangle of the foreclosure process.

A short sale does affect the seller’s credit score, reducing it as much as a foreclosure would, according to Fair Isaac Corp., which developed the system.

On average, according to recent data from foreclosure search engine RealtyTrac, short sales are taking 306 days from start to finish, compared with 113 days in 2006 as the housing market started to unravel.

Area real estate agents who handle such transactions have acknowledged that they do take a long time to complete, and that delays often result in loss of the sale.

But lenders are becoming more accommodating, though they have issues with short sales because unscrupulous investors and others have abused them, perhaps to the tune of $375 million in annual losses nationwide.

In January, there were more than 35,000 short sales nationwide, on pace for more than 105,000 pre-foreclosure sales for the first quarter. That would be the highest quarterly total since the first three months of 2009.

This is not the first time the government has acted to accelerate the short-sale process. In late 2009, the Treasury Department proposed financial incentives and simplified the procedures for completing them. That included a $1,000 payment to servicers and a maximum of $1,000 to go to investors who signed off on payments to subordinate lienholders, the Treasury said. Borrowers were to receive $1,500 in relocation expenses.

The rules, which took effect in April 2010, were supposed to reduce the short-sale process to 10 days, but didn’t.

The pending Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac guidelines will mandate weekly status updates to the borrower if the short sale remains under review after 30 calendar days.

Servicers also will be required to make and then inform borrowers of final decisions within 60 calendar days of receipt of an offer.

By the end of the year, Fannie and Freddie will announce other “enhancements” to the short-sale process, including borrower-eligibility evaluation, simplified documents, and payments to subordinate lienholders.

Housing Finance Agency acting director Edward J. DeMarco said the changes were being considered as “additional tools to prevent foreclosure, keep homes occupied, and help maintain stable communities.”

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