Real Estate Information

As the world watches the devastation that is occurring in Haiti in the aftermath of the hurricane, many individuals and companies are coming together in an effort to help and provide aid to those in need. One such partnership includes Florida Realtors and the National Association of Realtors making a contribution in collecting donations to send to Haiti.

“We have all been deeply touched by the horrific damage and loss of life caused by the earthquake in Haiti. It is truly incomprehensible how the Haitian people are suffering,” says Florida Realtors President Wendell Davis.

The leadership team in Florida, which is headed by Davis, came together to contribute $10,000 toward Haiti and to the National Association of Realtors’ Relief Foundation.

In addition to those funds, Florida Realtors will attempt to collect individual donations when their Mid-Winter Business Meetings are help from January 20 – 24 at Orlando, Florida’s Renaissance Resort. The fund is said to be collecting checks and cash, but no credit cards. The contributions can be made at the event’s registration desk and all funds will be given to the National Association of Realtors’ Relief Fund.

“It is in challenging situations such as this that Realtors come together to, once again, show that their compassion and devotion to community are unmatched,” says Davis.

Send checks, payable to “Realtors Relief Foundation,” to:

Dave Garrison, Vice President of Finance and Administration
Florida Realtors
P.O. Box 725025
Orlando, FL 32822-5017

On January 6th, Fannie May stated that it would begin to start to thoroughly review hundreds of Florida condo projects for a new “special approval” label. The reason? Fannie Mae wants to restructure mortgage approvals for certain projects that do not fall into the company guidelines.

Many Florida realtors have been pushing Fannie Mae to review its condo lending program, and as a result, Fannie Mae actually used a number of realtors as consultants on the program. One realtor, Summer Grenne, vice president and regional manager with Prudential Florida 1st Realty in Ft. Lauderdale, said “This is good new for Florida and a step in the right direction for the state’s condominium market.”

Greene thinks that the review will help put a positive spin in the market, adding “Hopefully, with the special approval designation process, we can begin to get our condo inventories reduced and absorbed as more condo buyers receive a green light from lenders for loans. This will help boost confidence in the market.”

More than half of mortgages in the U.S. are backed by Fannie Mae and its cousin Freddie Mac. Greene also hopes that as Freddie Mac sees the positive shift that Fannie Mae’s condo reorganization is taking, that they too will jump on board.

The Fannie Mae special approval designation is set to be effective from 9 to 18 months, and lenders have to confirm all special approval designations on the loan application, marked with a date. The designation only applied to condo projects.

On the heels of all the investment fraud that has been rampant, not only in South Florida, but all over the country... SouthFloridaRealtySource wants to make sure that anyone wanting to invest in residential real estate are equipped with the knowledge of what to look for. Here is a video that covers just that:

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For more information on the South Florida real estate market, or to find a home and/or condo in the area, contact seasoned real estate professional Roman Pavlik at southfloridarealtysource.com.

Home owner scams have been around for ages, but with the recent tanking of the housing market, and the subprime crisis, fraud is more prevalent than ever. SouthFloridaRealtySource has come up with a few scams that you should be aware of.

Watch Our for Telemarketers: While the majority of people do not fall for telemarketing home scams, other demographic groups are more susceptible to phone calls. Among those groups are the elderly, and telemarketers are taking full advantage of them. Phone calls from "fake" telemarketers posing as representatives from companies such as Fannie Mae are offering home owners to refinance their homes for lower rates. However, it is the information that is given over the phone that seals the fraud deal. These people use this information to commit identity theft. Most large national lenders do not make business or loan deals via telephone. Make sure you know who you are speaking to.
 
Not All Contractors are Good: Please be cautious of any contractor that just shows up at your home. This can be tricky if you have previously make inquiries about home improvements. Most of these scam artists are actually hired by crooked lenders looking to get you to approve a high-interest loan without you actually being aware of it. Besides, some people don't group a lender and a building contractor together. So, be careful and make sure to read any and all paperwork that a contractor gives you.

People Who Can "Finance" Anyone: Unfortunately, because of the high incidence of foreclosures, coupled with the fact that much of the default information is public record, people are approaching those in this difficult situation and posing and someone who can help. They offer to have you sign the title of your home to them for a "short" amount of time, when in reality you are signing your home over to them permanently. If you are defaulting on your loan, talk only to your lender. They will make sure that you don�t receive any unsolicited advice.

South Florida has been riddled with heaps of foreclosure sales, short sales, and buyers profiting from the default of other people's loans. Now, the city is seeing a new trend: sales of unfinished homes. As more builders and construction companies left homes in mid-build due to the housing economy, these houses seemed to be nothing but a huge eyesore for neighbours and passers by. However, new life is being breathed into these homes as they are settling themselves into the market.

Although buying a half-built home is nothing new, the circumstances that surround the unfinished homes during the housing boom are a little different. Firstly, many homes were contracted to begin work and were never even started. Second, many of the builders or contractors that were originally working on a property are not around anymore, leading to confusion by the builder who takes over a project.

In Miami, officials are still unsure of how many unfinished homes are in this position as builders were given a year extension on their building permits. This happened in March of 2009, so it remains to be seen what comes in the pipeline. Builders have also been known to delay their work on a project to finish in the new year for tax benefits. Officials in Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties say they aren't sure how many partly built homes are in this particular situation.

According to the United States Census, the percentage of half-built homes rose from 39 percent in January of this year to 43 percent by October. Even though this number reflects those homes that are under contract and under construction, it also includes unfinished homes that were abandoned by builders, and taken over by the bank.

The issues and questions surrounding the First Time Homebuyer Federal Tax Credit can be somewhat confusing. SouthFloridaRealtySource wants to make it easier by sharing this short, but information-packed video on the credit and what it could mean for you. Check it out below:

For more information on the Federal Tax Credit, or for info regarding South Florida real estate, contact Roman Pavlik at SouthFloridaRealtySource.com.

It was only a few years ago that the cities of Miami and Las Vegas were in the middle of an enormous growth spurt. In the midst of the boom, a mushrooming of condo developments and more-than-willing buyers sent home prices through the roof.

Now, foreclosures are ruling the hard-hit towns, and home prices are skimming on rock bottom. In comparing the two cities, Miami came out on top in terms of scope of development. The condo explosion in South Florida was colossal.

"They built less in Las Vegas than in Miami," but there are fewer potential buyers, said Marty Burger, president and chief executive of Artisan Real Estate Ventures in Las Vegas.

The market was pitching condos for second homes to those that visited either city… a better alternative than renting hotel rooms.

"There was no real demand that you could point to," said Jack Winston, a consultant with Goodkin Consulting. Winston was cautious about the development and growth, as there was no real demand that justified any of the new projects.

"Outside developers came here and really misjudged this market," said Irwin Molasky, a Las Vegas real estate developer. "It is not a Miami market. We don't have the South American trade, the New York trade, and they just thought, if you build it, it will come.

Although Miami is in recovery-mode, the city still attracts millions of tourists and now is a better time than ever to find amazing condos and super-affordable prices.

To find South Florida condos, contact real estate professional Roman Pavlik at southfloridarealtysource.com.

Over half a million home owners have been helped out by a government program aimed to aid those facing foreclosure. The program was intended to make sure that the foreclosure crisis remains somewhat maintained, and does not spiral out of control.

However, Elizabeth Warren, chairperson for the Congressional Oversight Panel for the $700 plus billion bailout program says, “We’re concerned that not enough foreclosures will be prevented.”

Unfortunately, it seems as if the plan is falling short in three key areas. First, the people who really need the help are the ones who are not eligible. Making adjustments and aid available to these people may decrease the ever-growing foreclosure filings.

Second, only about 25,000 loans are being modified a week, which is far below (less than half) the amount of foreclosures being filed a week.

Third, so far only 1,700 or so home owners have gotten loan modifications. Most others are still in a trial period, therefore only delaying the inevitable rather than actually helping.

Warren stated that the plan’s timing is misplaced, as it “appears to be targeted at the housing crisis as it existed six months ago rather than as it exists today.”

The housing crisis, although reporting spikes of good news here and there, is still very much alive. Many industry experts believe that the market will “sour” before it gets better. The slow start to this federal program is one inclination of the long road ahead.

“We’re still living with the risk that housing is going to be a source of weakness in the economy,” says Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.

The Plaza at Oceanside in Pompano Beach was bought out by bulk buyers Chetrit Group and Read Property Group for $38.5 million from WCI Communities. The total parcel is comprised of 24,448 square feet of commercial retail space, 138 condo units, and a 3.75 acre development site.

The two bulk buyers were recently approved for a $28.2 million mortgage as their plan is to turn the property into a mixed-use development. The new development will house a 303-room hotel, 77 residential units and over 45,000 square feet of commercial retail space. The two buyers were able to acquire the building and land after WCI filed for bankruptcy.

The non-recourse loan was arranged by New York City-based Meridian Capital Group, and Ladder Capital was the one who granted the mortgage. Ladder is specialty finance company focused on the commercial real estate market.

Even though WCI filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in August 2008 and emerged in September of this year, they retained Cushman & Wakefield to help sell the property’s units and attached land.

Brad Capas, a senior director at Cushman & Wakefield, said, “The important thing that is very encouraging is that there is plenty of investment capital pursuing these deals.” He also stated that although there is a renewed interest in deals such as these, that the debt markets overall are still struggling.

To find South Florida real estate, contact seasoned professional Roman Pavlik at roman@pavlikgroup.com or visit SouthFloridaRealtySource.com.

The Community Association Leadership Lobby conducted a survey of Florida Homeowner Associations and their viewpoints on the current state of the housing market, as well as their predictions and forecasts for the future. The survey showed that a majority of the state's homeowner associations were an immense amount of stress and felt discouraged about the condition of the market.

Out of 777 associations that participated in the survey, over 90 percent said that financial problems will persist or get worse in 2010. Additionally, approximately 60 percent of the associations raised assessments to cover revenue losses from the past year and half, much of which was caused by owners who were in default. About 66 percent said that a large increase in the amount of property owners who are more than 60 days late paying their fees is also responsible for the raised assessment fees.

Homeowner associations are in favor of supporting legislation that would permit them to collect additional late fees from investor-owned properties, as well as from any tenants that are renting out any properties. This survey and its results may further help Florida homeowner associations, along with those in other states, to change legislation to allow more fees to be collected.

To find South Florida real estate, contact seasoned professional Roman Pavlik at roman@pavlikgroup.com or visit SouthFloridaRealtySource.com.