Hot Neighborhoods in South Florida - Miami and Broward Infographics

 

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Bang for the buck

Values in these areas have risen less than the county average over the past year and meet all the following qualifications: Schools rated B or better, average or low crime, and median value under $400,000.

Miami-Dade

• West Kendall
• Tamiami
• The Hammocks
• Kendale Lakes
• The Crossings
• Fountainebleau
• Westchester
• Northwest Hialeah
• South Miami Lakes
• Glenvar Heights (condo/townhome)
• Aventura (condo/townhome)
• Waterfront North Miami (condo/townhome)

Broward

• Hallandale Beach
• Sunrise
• Coral Springs
• Coconut Creek
• West Pembroke Pines
• West Davie
• Southwest Plantation (condo/townhome)
• West Deerfield Beach (condo/townhome)

Source: Zillow, Florida Department of Education, Esri

Hot neighborhoods

Values in these areas have gone up more than the county average over the past year and meet all the following qualifications: Schools rated B or better, average or low crime, and median value under $400,000.

Miami-Dade

• Country Club/Palm Springs North
• South Miami Heights
• South Cutler Bay
• Hialeah Gardens
• East Hialeah
• Shenandoah
• Coral Way
• Upper Eastside (condo/townhome)
• El Portal (condo/townhome)
• Miami Shores (condo/townhome)
• Pinecrest (condo/townhome)

Broward

• East Davie
• Driftwood
• Shady Banks
• Lauderdale Isles
• Riverland
• Tarpon River (condo/townhome)
• Central Pembroke Pines (condo/townhome)
• West Miramar (condo/townhome)

Source: Zillow, Florida Department of Education, Esri

Good deals

These affordable areas had the year-over-year highest value gains, regardless of school grades or crime.

Miami-Dade

• Allapattah
• Little Havana
• West Flagler
• Miami Gardens
• Ives Estates
• Florida City
• Princeton
• Little River

Broward

• Lauderhill
• Oakland Park
• North Lauderdale
• Margate
• Tamarac
• Pompano Beach

Source: Zillow, Florida Department of Education, Esri

Reprint courtesy and copyright by The Miami Herald. Excerpted from Miami Herald article that originally appeared here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/real-estate-news/article35702148.html#emlnl=5-Minute_Herald
Original article written by Nicholas Nehamas nnehamas@miamiherald.com

Renting and flipping new Miami condos is all the rage

The majority of new condo buyers in Miami have been looking to capitalize on their investments by flipping the units or renting them out, according to research by CraneSpotters.

Looking at the four largest condo towers completed in greater downtown Miami since construction resumed in 2011, anywhere from 45 percent to 96 percent of the units sold by the developers in each building were placed back on the market or put up for rent. That indicates a high level of investor ownership in those buildings, and also raises some questions.

With more than 18,100 condo units either under construction, planned with approvals or proposed in greater downtown Miami, according to CraneSpotters.com, is there enough rental demand at higher price points to support that many new units? And how will they be impacted by the nearly 7,800 apartments in the development pipeline?

The recently completed condo towers in Miami sold in the mid-$400s per square foot, but the average price per square foot for new projects is more than double that now, CraneSpotters principal Peter Zalewski said. When the sales prices climb, so must rents. Are there enough high-earning renters in Miami to fill those units?

"We strongly believe that when Brickell CityCentre opens and people will be able to walk to a shopping mall with a Saks Fifth Avenue, 11 cinemas and 500,000 square feet of retail, Brickell condos will raise in value and so will rents," said Carlos Rosso, head of the Related Group's condominium division. "Twenty-four-hour urban living close to the workplaces is and will continue to be in high demand."

Here’s a look at how the four largest recently completed condo projects in Miami have performed:

Nine at Mary Brickell Village

• Units: 390
• Units sold/price per square foot: 300 for $501
• Active MLS listings/price per square foot: 17 for $469
• Units resold: 0
• Asking rentals/price per square foot: 95 for $2.78
• Closed rentals/price per square foot: 23 for $2.47

1100 Millecento Residences

• Units: 382
• Units sold/price per square foot: 376 for $435
• Active MLS listings/price per square foot: 99 for $403
• Units resold: 1
• Asking rentals/price per square foot: 67 for $2.59
• Closed rentals/price per square foot: 120 for $2.25

BrickellHouse

• Units: 374
• Units sold/price per square foot: 374 for $504
• Active MLS listings/price per square foot: 91 for $627
• Units resold: 7
• Asking rentals/price per square foot: 64 for $3.63
• Closed rentals/price per square foot: 77 for $3.24

MyBrickell

• Units: 192
• Units sold/price per square foot: 192 for $360
• Active MLS listings/price per square foot: 31 for $379
• Units resold: 8
• Asking rentals/price per square foot: 19 for $2.67
• Closed rentals/price per square foot: 126 for $2.01

It looks like some of these condo towers are more like apartment buildings. Projects in other South Florida cities have behaved quite differently. For instance, in Broward County’s largest newly completed condo tower:

Beachwalk – Hallandale Beach

• Units: 300
• Units sold/price per square foot: 289 for $448
• Active MLS listing/price per square foot: 49 for $532
• Units resold: 1
• Asking rentals/price per square foot: 6 for $2.97
• Closed rentals: 0

There's a fair amount of resale activity, but not many rentals. However, Beachwalk has a rental pool system managed by the hotel management that doesn't show up on MLS, so many unit owner participate in that. CraneSpotters.com also looked at the largest recently completed condominium in Palm Beach County, Bay Colony Juno Beach, and found only two of its 121 units on the rental market, although it had 23 resales.

Reposted courtesy of Brian Bandell and South Florida Business Journal

Original post appeared here: http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/news/2015/07/10/renting-and-flipping-new-miami-condos-all-the-rage.html?ana=e_sflo_bn_newsalert&u=kjqD4NmNTYzv1JVDYuD+8WZzhLb&t=1436798791

Q&A: FICO executive on credit scoring changes

 

NEW YORK (AP) – July 13, 2015 – Your credit score is an important bit of information that determines a lot about your financial life. But if you wanted to be in the loop, it came with a price tag.

That never seemed fair, but now consumers can increasingly see their FICO score for free – the three-digit number that determines if you'll be approved for a credit card or loan.

Fair Isaac Corp., the company that developed the FICO score, has been working with credit card issuers and lenders to allow them to show customers their FICO score online or on monthly statements. Seeing the score frequently pushes consumers to improve their finances, says Jim Wehmann, a vice president of FICO's scores business.

People with higher FICO scores, which generally range from 300 to 850, are offered lower interest rates on mortgages or have an easier time getting approved for credit cards or loans.

FICO scores are calculated using information from your credit report, a detailed list of your past and current debts. But roughly 45 million Americans have no credit history or credit score, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. FICO is developing a scoring system for these so-called "credit invisibles."

Wehmann offered insight on what you should know about your credit score. Excerpts have been edited for clarity and length.

Q: What's the fastest way to improve your FICO score?
A: Always make your payments on time. Roughly 35 percent of your score is based on payments. That's going to be the most important factor.

Q: What hurts your score the most?
A: Not making your payments on time. Delinquencies and other negative events – collection items, bankruptcy, foreclosures – will have a significant negative impact on your score.

Q: What's the biggest mistake people make when it comes to their FICO score?
A: Not fully understanding that the behavior that they take today could impact their score and their ability to get credit later.

Q: It has become easier to get a free FICO score. Big credit card issuers, such as Discover, Chase, offer the score to their customers for free. How did that happen?
A: We launched something called FICO Score Open Access, which allows lenders to freely share with consumers the score that the lender is using. We launched the program two years ago and it's grown significantly. About 65 million people right now are eligible to get their FICO score for free through their lender, and we expect that number to grow over the coming months. There's a lot of attention given to the largest financial institutions, but we're working with credit unions, community banks and smaller organizations.

Q: Is it true that each person has several different FICO scores?
A: Yes. We have a few different versions. Some lenders use older versions of the scoring methodology, and some are for specific types of lenders.

Q: Who are the credit invisibles?
A: They're called invisibles for a couple of reasons. One is they don't have credit scores. Some don't have credit files, so they have no credit history; no credit card or mortgage or auto loan or personal loan. No data has been captured by the credit bureaus. They're young people who are just starting out, who don't have any credit, or they may be immigrants to the country where they don't have a U.S.-based credit history.

Q: What information does FICO need to create a score?
A: From a FICO perspective, they are unscorable because we don't yet have six months of history on them, or we haven't had an update in six months.

Q: If there's no credit history, what information will you use to build their score?
A: Wireless or landline or cable bills.

Q: When will that FICO score be used?
A: We're in a pilot phase. We've built the score and we are right now working with lenders for them to validate the score based on their actual applications.

Q: When will it be ready?
A: We have 12 lenders in the initial pilot, so we're going to wait until they do their validations before we make it widely available to all lenders, probably by the end of the year or first quarter of next year.

Copyright © 2015 The Associated Press, Joseph Pisani. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Reposted Courtesy of Associated Press. Original Post Appeared Here: http://www.floridarealtors.org/NewsAndEvents/article.cfm?p=3&id=325542

Latin America buyers dominate South Florida property sales

Latin American buyers account for more than two-thirds of all foreign property sales in South Florida, USA, a new report reveals.

Around 68% of international buyers in Miami are from Latin American countries, with Canadians and French and Italians also in the top 10, according to the 2014 Miami International Buyer Survey conducted by the National Association of Realtors.

Christopher Zoller the 2015 Residential President of the MIAMI Association of Realtors and a Coral Gables Realtor, says, “International buyers have long been attracted to Miami’s world-class art, beaches and amenities.

“South Florida’s proximity to Latin America and the Caribbean and our more than 1,000 multinational companies offer so many opportunities for foreign real estate consumers. Faced with volatile economies in their homelands, South Florida real estate is considered a secure place to invest one’s money.”

The survey ranks buyers by countries and highlights key characteristics of foreign buyers and shows there are more foreign buyers in Miami than in the rest of the United States. A preview was featured at the March R.E.A.L Awards and Real Estate Summit hosted by the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce.

Almost three-quarters (72%) of Miami-Dade and Broward members reported working with an international client, around two and a half times the national average of 28%, according to NAR data.

The top countries for consumers purchasing properties in Miami-Dade and Broward counties are:

• Venezuela
• Argentina
• Brazil
• Colombia
• Canada
• France
• Mexico
• Italy
• Ecuador
• Peru

Foreign buyers spend more on properties than domestic buyers in South Florida with a mean purchase price of US$444,000, which is higher than the mean purchase price of all Florida closed sales ($245,000) and the median sale price in Miami-Dade ($215,000) and Broward ($185,125).
They also buy more higher-end properties compared to all buyers in Florida, with 28% of South Florida foreign buyers purchasing properties valued at US$500,001 or more.

Overseas buyers prefer condominiums in the central/urban areas, which they intend to use mainly for vacation and rental investment purposes.

Around four out of five international buyers (81%) in South Florida purchase properties with cash and the figure is even higher for new-build sales at 90%.

Most MIAMI members speak at least two languages, so are in a good position to maximise foreign sales. In Miami 73% of Miami agents reported working with a foreign buyer, compared to 60% in Broward.

The MIAMI Association of REALTORS partners with more than 125 organizations worldwide and conducts international outreach on a global level. It  represents more than 35,000 real estate professionals in all aspects of real estate sales, marketing, and brokerage and is the largest local Realtor association in the United States.

*Sotheby’s International Realty says Miami is one of the top two fastest growing housing markets.  Despite many claims that the market would take a decade or more to recover from the Recession from 2007-2009, Miami is the most active construction market throughout the US, with the exception of New York, according to its latest Trends Report.

Key points from the report:

·         The Mid Beach area has trended steadily upwards at a 77.1% increase over the past five years.

·         Miami’s waterfront Islands are home to some of the most affluent citizens of the world. Indian Creek’s 86 residents’ net worth is estimated at over $37 billion, which is greater than the gross domestic product of half the world’s nations.

·         The average home in Gables Estates is priced at $9,250,000, up a huge 64.9% over 2013 levels.

·         Surrounding communities in The South End area such as Coconut Grove and Coral Gables have additionally increased 20% more than 2013 levels.

·         In 2014, all areas in Miami Beach had double digit price growth compared to the previous year

Daniel de la Vega, President and Managing Partner at One Sotheby’s International Realty says, “In 2014, the dominant trend was continued price increases with fewer transactions. We expect this will continue into 2015. We project the luxury, single-family market will remain strong. While global economic conditions are shifting, which may extend market times, the level of demand for luxury, single-family far outweighs current supply. Although this level of appreciation is not realistically repeatable year-over-year, continued double-digit gains are expected during 2015 provided interest rates remain low.”

The market for condominiums is aimed almost exclusively at luxury ($1million-$5million) and ultra-luxury ($10milliomn-plus) buyers. Additionally, without exception, Miami’s Beach’s South Beach (with South of Fifth) and Miami’s North End submarkets are the strongest in price and pre-construction availability. Recent development initiatives such as the Miami World centre, a $3billion dollar master plan in the downtown area demonstrate that the city has become a magnet for investors on national and international levels.

Reprinted courtesy of Author Adrian Bishop and OPP.today

Original article: http://www.opp.today/latin-america-buyers-dominate-south-florida-property-sales/

South Florida sees third-highest annual home price growth in nation

A strong economy and an influx of new residents meant higher home prices in South Florida over the past year.

The resale value of single-family homes in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties grew 9.2 percent in February over the same month in 2014. Only Denver (10 percent) and San Francisco (9.8 percent) saw bigger annual gains.

Nationwide, home prices grew 4.2 percent over the year.

Those numbers come from a closely watched market barometer, the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, which measure home prices around the country and are released on a two-month lag. But rising home values can pose a problem if wages don’t keep up.

“In order for people to move into a second home, we need first-time home buyers to come into the market,” said Bill Banfield, a vice president at the mortgage lender Quicken Loans. “If the jobs being created for younger people don’t have sufficient wages, you’re going to end up with buyers priced out of the market and reluctant to purchase a home.”

As in recent reports, South Florida’s monthly price gains remain slightly less rampant after warp-speed increases post-recession. Analysts say the slow and steady growth is a sign of a healthy market, not a cause for concern.

Between January and February, home values in the Tri-County area grew at a seasonally adjusted rate of 1.1 percent. That was solidly in the middle of the pack compared with the 20 major metropolitan areas measured by the report. San Francisco (3.3 percent), Denver (2.2 percent), Los Angeles (1.6 percent) and Minneapolis (1.6 percent) led the way in terms of monthly growth.

One factor dragging on Miami’s growth: a stubbornly high rate of “distressed” sales, which include foreclosures and short sales. Short sales occur when the seller owes more on a home mortgage than the house is worth. Both usually sell at steep discounts to traditional home sales.

“Investors and others looking to take advantage of bargains were driving up home values in Miami and South Florida,” said Kwame Donaldson, an economist at Moody’s Analytics. “Now that those bargains are growing more rare, we’re seeing less price appreciation. This is a return to a normal market.”

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article19800501.html#emlnl=5-Minute_Herald#storylink=cpy

Miami-Dade County led the nation in distressed sales in February, according to a recent report from the property analytics firm CoreLogic, with more than 24 percent of local home sales in February considered distressed. That’s way down from 2009, when one in two Miami-Dade home sales were distressed sales, but the dial has scarcely moved since last year.

Florida’s housing market was hit harder than most other states during the financial crisis, and its court system has struggled to keep up with the pace of foreclosures. Distressed sales accounted for 22 percent of the state’s total home sales in February.

Foreclosures and short sales made up 13.5 percent of home sales nationwide. “The judicial wheels have stalled in Florida,” Donaldson said.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article19800501.html#emlnl=5-Minute_Herald#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article19800501.html#emlnl=5-Minute_Herald#storylink=cpy

Home values across the nation

Prices for single-family homes in Miami rose 9.2 percent in February 2015 over February 2014 — the third-fastest rate of growth in the nation.

City	Rank	Increase from Feb. 2014
Denver	1	10 percent
San Francisco	2	9.8 percent
Miami	3	9.2 percent
Dallas	4	8.6 percent
Seattle	5	7.1 percent
Portland	6	7.1 percent
Tampa	7	6.9 percent
Los Angeles	8	5.8 percent
Las Vegas	9	5.8 percent
Atlanta	10	5.6 percent
National		4.2 percent

SOURCE: S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article19800501.html#emlnl=5-Minute_Herald#storylink=cpy

Home values across the nation

Prices for single-family homes in Miami rose 9.2 percent in February 2015 over February 2014 — the third-fastest rate of growth in the nation.

City	Rank	Increase from Feb. 2014
Denver	1	10 percent
San Francisco	2	9.8 percent
Miami	3	9.2 percent
Dallas	4	8.6 percent
Seattle	5	7.1 percent
Portland	6	7.1 percent
Tampa	7	6.9 percent
Los Angeles	8	5.8 percent
Las Vegas	9	5.8 percent
Atlanta	10	5.6 percent
National		4.2 percent

SOURCE: S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article19800501.html#emlnl=5-Minute_Herald#storylink=cpy

Article Courtesy of The Miami Herald and Author Nicholas Nehamas - nnehamas@MiamiHerald.com
Original Article: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article19800501.html#emlnl=5-Minute_Herald

Foreclosure Freeze Slows South Florida's Residential Real Estate Sales

As banks suspend foreclosures, sales crucial in South Florida's troubled real estate market are in limbo.

By Toluse Olorunnipa

The decision by three major banks to freeze foreclosures will buy distressed homeowners months of extra time and temporarily block lenders from reclaiming homes.

But it also threatens to buckle South Florida's home sales.

Bank-owned properties make up about 40 percent of home sales in South Florida, and suspensions by JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America and GMAC could deliver a debilitating blow to that crucial segment of the embattled real estate market.

``People don't realize that this is our market,'' said Matthew Murray, a Realtor with Pat Dahne Realty Group who specializes in bank-owned sales. ``It's what's selling. If you delay the process, it's going to delay the recovery.''

There are mounting reports of approved foreclosure sales being stopped pre-closing, and buyers being left in limbo as banks try to deal with exposed ``robo-signers'' and unverified affidavits.

As the foreclosure moratoriums play out, a slowdown in low-priced, bank-owned properties coming through the pipeline could further hamper sales in South Florida, which depends on foreclosures more than most parts of the country.

The lenders have put the brakes on their foreclosure operations after bank employees and affiliates confessed they had been individually signing thousands of legal documents each month without verifying the details of the cases. Those documents, which contain crucial information like the amount owed and the owner of the note, have sparked allegations that thousands of foreclosure filings are tainted by fraud and forgery.

As paperwork issues stall sales, the hottest sector of the local market -- bank-owned properties, or so-called REOs -- lies at risk of going cold.

Together, the three lenders represent nearly a third of the local REO market. Bank of America, for example, has nearly 500 REO properties listed for sale in Miami-Dade and Broward counties, according to its website. GMAC, now known as Ally Financial, has at least 200 REOs in South Florida and JP Morgan has at least 250. Many of those properties have buyers and are currently pending sales, the banks' websites show. Other banks could follow suit in stopping foreclosure sales, although Wells Fargo announced Wednesday that it would not go that route.

IN LIMBO

Realtor Matthew Murray pointed out that most of his sales have not yet been affected, but other Realtors said bank suspensions have left some current sales in limbo and the future of the REO market uncertain.

Ashton Coleman, a Realtor with Keller Williams, planned to close on the sale of a North Bay Village condo this Friday before he got a letter from Bank of America saying the sale was being stalled.

``We figured that it would be fine since the bank already owned the property, but we figured that the bank probably found something wrong,'' Coleman said. ``The bank will be delaying [the sale] for at least 15 days, and for as many as 90 days.''

GMAC sent out letters to real estate agents last month alerting them that pending REO sales would be delayed an additional 30 days, Realtors said.

Anthony Askowitz, who has a few pending deals on GMAC-owned properties in Miami, said many of his buyers are investors, and have been willing to wait.

``If it's an investor, the investor is going to be able to handle it a lot easier than someone who has to move out of their current home by a certain date,'' said Askowitz, a broker and owner of two Re/Max offices.

But the depths of the foreclosure mess have not fully been uncovered, and no one knows for sure how long it will take lenders to clear up paperwork problems and re-start the foreclosure machine. With banks facing new calls for federal investigations and full-on foreclosure moratoriums, 30 days might not be enough.

HIGH-LEVEL CALLS

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Al Franken and Florida Congressman Alan Grayson are among those calling for bank probes and foreclosure halts across the U.S.

Most REO sales contracts have provisions that allow banks to halt a sale if issues come up concerning the property's title, said Murray, who added that has happened to him just twice in 20 years.

``The only way that happens is if they can't give you free and clear marketable title,'' he said.

Banks have authority to push these sales back for months, but not all buyers will be willing to hang around. Bank-owned properties are often abandoned and unkempt, and the longer a home stays empty, the more vulnerable it is to vandalism and disrepair, which can affect the home's value.

``It's in the bank's best interest to get this rectified as soon as possible,'' Askowitz said. ``So I don't think that this is going to drag on.''

Dennis Donet, a Miami foreclosure defense attorney, said that the despite the banks' desire to fix things quickly, legal battles could stall foreclosure sales for a year or more.

One of his clients recently learned that the sale of his foreclosed property was being canceled by its new owner GMAC, because of problems with the lender's foreclosure affidavit. Jeffrey Stephan, the GMAC employee who signed the affidavit, was exposed last month as a so-called ``robo-signer'' during a deposition. Stephan said he had signed more than 10,000 foreclosure documents each month, indicating that he had not taken the time to verify the details of each case.

LONG-TERM ISSUE

Donet has been talking with attorneys that represent banks, and said the general consensus is that questionable affidavits and lost documents will leave foreclosures hanging in the balance for a long time to come.

``There isn't anybody saying that this isn't going to be at least a six-month to one-year delay on the process,'' he said. ``Anything that interrupts the flow of capital is bad for the community.''

Reprinted courtesy of The Miami Herald: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/10/06/v-fullstory/1861253/foreclosure-freeze-slows-home.html

Florida Real Estate Market Has Hit Bottom - Univ of Florida

UF: Florida real estate market has hit bottom

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – April 29, 2010 – Florida real estate markets show the first tentative signs of recovering from the most painful recession in the state's history, according to the latest University of Florida (UF) report.

"Results of our first quarter survey indicate that the real estate market in Florida has hit bottom and is in the process of stabilizing across most property types," says Timothy Becker, director of UF's Bergstrom Center for Real Estate Studies.

But while most of the survey respondents report the market probably won't get any worse, few say it has actually begun to improve yet, Becker says. "One of our respondents summed it up by stating that 'if anything, we will get less bad.'"

On the positive side, private capital – both foreign and domestic – is continuing to enter the state in search of quality investment deals. As banks start to deal with their problem assets, more deals will come to market.

Another good sign: Life insurance companies have started to re-invest in commercial properties after backing off for the last year and a half, Becker says. Because these companies use premiums from life insurance policies to make investments, they are not deterred by the lack of available bank financing.

"(Life insurance companies) see the fundamentals of the economy stabilizing and they see the opportunity to get quality assets at a good price," Becker says. "So if they think things aren't going to get worse and they may actually get better, it follows that they're going to want to start investing again."

On the negative side, unemployment continues to be one of the state's biggest problems, edging up to 12.3 percent in March, its highest level since the state began keeping count in the 1970s. Florida has lost more than 880,000 jobs since 2007.

Although there is a potential for job growth later in the year, even under the most optimistic assumptions it will take three to four years to return to 2006 levels, Becker says.

Also of concern is the continued reluctance of commercial banks to lend money because of pressure from regulators to manage risks along with depressed values that make it difficult to refinance mortgages.

The retail and office markets are the worst off, Becker says. "Until there is an increase in job growth, there is no need for more office space, and people aren't spending as much money as they used to."

Apartments continue to be the best market in the state due to high demand from people moving out of foreclosed homes. "More people are going to be living in temporary spaces than trying to buy homes just because it's gotten a lot more difficult to buy homes from a financing perspective," Becker says.

Statewide, Florida's new housing market will continue to be slow, a result of more foreclosed homes becoming available. "That competition makes it very difficult for new homes to get built and purchased because buyers can often get an equal or nicer home for a much cheaper price on the foreclosure market," Becker says.

One of the strongest areas of the state is South Florida, especially Miami-Dade and Broward counties, with their diverse economies, steady migration and influx of foreign capital. "The glut of condos in South Florida is actually starting to change hands – they're beginning to rent them – and I think there is more life in downtown Miami than there has been in a long time," Becker says.

Orlando, Tampa and Jacksonville also are picking up. "Florida's big cities – those four areas – are less bad off than the rest of the state, and they're going to recover quicker than other places," Becker says.

Jacksonville, in particular, is in a good position because its housing market never got as hot as other markets; and, as a result, it doesn't have as many foreclosures. "I think Jacksonville is primed to really take off, and with the expansion of the port is going to have a lot of jobs coming into the marketplace," Becker says.

A positive note overall is that survey respondents' confidence in their own business has risen for the fifth consecutive quarter. In previous breakdowns by profession, developers and lenders had extremely low expectations for their own businesses, and that has grown substantially in the last few surveys.

"It's always a good sign for us that the lenders think their business is going to get better," Becker says. "Maybe it means there is some light at the end of the tunnel, even though we're still not at a great spot."

© 2010 Florida Realtors® Courtesy: http://www.floridarealtors.org/NewsAndEvents/article.cfm?id=238713

Foreclosure Filings Jump in South Florida

Foreclosure filings jump in South Florida
Mounting job losses, “underwater” mortgages lead to more foreclosure filings in South Florida

By Paul Owers, Sun Sentinel, April 15, 2010

Foreclosure filings rose last month by 38 percent in Broward County as homeowners struggled with unemployment and "underwater" mortgages, RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday.

Broward had 6,341 homeowners in some stage of foreclosure in March, up from 4,599 a year ago, according to the Irvine, Calif.-based company that tracks mortgage defaults nationwide. Broward had the eighth-highest foreclosure rate among Florida's 67 counties, with one in every 127 housing units receiving a filing.

Palm Beach County filings in March totaled 3,983, more than double the 1,509 in March 2009. The county had the state's 17th-highest foreclosure rate.

The problem isn't likely to improve soon, as job losses mount and home price declines add to the number of homeowners who owe more than their properties are worth.

"We're going to continue to have a dark cloud hanging over our real estate market for some time," said Greg McBride, senior financial analyst with Bankrate.com in North Palm Beach.

Initial foreclosure filings in both counties were down substantially compared with February, perhaps an early indication that a government-sponsored foreclosure-alternative program started recently is working, RealtyTrac said.

The plan is designed to remove barriers to so-called short sales and promote deeds in lieu of foreclosures, in which homeowners hand back their properties to the banks. The plan took effect April 5, but some lenders were using it earlier this year.

The program is sure to be popular with people who want to get out from under onerous mortgages. But it will drag down home prices, creating more underwater borrowers who may fall into foreclosure, Fort Lauderdale real estate lawyer Shari Olefson said.

"I don't know that this is the answer," she said.

RealtyTrac spokesman Daren Blomquist said it's important to speed up short sales because that will clear the inventory of available homes and ultimately help the housing market recover.

Meanwhile, South Florida remains one of the busiest areas in the nation for loan modifications. A Treasury report on the Making Home Affordable program showed that the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach metropolitan area accounted for 4.7 percent of loan modification activity under the program.

But those efforts aren't likely to ease the foreclosure crisis, according to the Congressional Oversight Panel, a watchdog agency monitoring the federal government's bailout program.

RealtyTrac compiles default notices, scheduled foreclosure auctions and bank repossessions. Not all homeowners who get notices lose their properties.

Florida had the nation's fourth-highest foreclosure rate in March, with one in every 149 housing units receiving a filing, RealtyTrac said.

In December, the Florida Supreme Court ordered the creation of a statewide mediation program for homeowners and lenders before a property can be sold through foreclosure.

Broward's 17th Judicial Circuit Court has appointed the American Arbitration Association to administer its mediation program starting July 1. Program details for the 15th Judicial Circuit Court in Palm Beach County are not yet clear.

A bill in Florida's Legislature that would allow banks to foreclose without going before a judge appears to have died.

While the state's clogged foreclosure system needs an overhaul, the proposed bill was too radical, said Rod Petrey, president of the Collins Center for Public Policy. The nonprofit group provides mediation services for four state circuit courts.

"With someone's home, where their family is, we ought to move very slowly in taking that away," Petrey said.

Staff writer Harriet Johnson Brackey contributed to this report. Paul Owers can be reached at Powers@SunSentinel.com. Copyright © 2010, South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Provided courtesy of Florida Sun-Sentinel: http://www.sun-sentinel.com

Florida’s Existing Home, Condo Sales Rise in October 2008

Florida’s existing home, condo sales rise in October 2008

ORLANDO, Fla. – Nov. 24, 2008 – For the second month in a row, Florida’s existing home sales rose in October, with Florida Realtors® reporting a 15 percent increase in activity in the year-to-year comparison; last month’s sales of existing condos statewide increased 5 percent in the year-to-year comparison, according to the latest housing data released by the Florida Association of Realtors (FAR).

A total of 10,443 existing homes sold statewide last month, up 15 percent over the 9,118 homes sold in October 2007, according to FAR. Florida Realtors also reported higher statewide existing home and existing condo sales in September compared to the year-ago levels.

Thirteen of Florida’s metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) reported increased existing-home sales in October; seven MSAs also showed gains in condo sales, marking the fourth consecutive month that a number of markets have noted higher sales activity.

Florida’s median sales price for existing homes last month was $169,700; a year ago, it was $222,200 for a 24 percent decrease. The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less.

The national median sales price for existing single-family homes in September 2008 was $190,600, down 8.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). In California, the statewide median resales price was $316,480 in September; in Massachusetts, it was $295,000; in Maryland, it was $271,520; and in New York, it was $215,000.

Market conditions continue to range widely, according to the latest housing outlook from NAR. “A pattern of sharply higher sales in areas with large price declines is well established,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “Affordability conditions have consistently been a major factor in driving sales. Historically during recessions, buyers have responded to incentives and it’s important for government to keep that in the forefront of housing stimulus decisions.”

In Florida’s year-to-year comparison for condos, 2,956 units sold statewide compared to 2,805 sold in October 2007 for a 5 percent increase. The statewide existing condo median sales price last month was $147,600; in October 2007 it was $192,300 for a 23 percent decrease. In the latest data available at press time, NAR reported the national median existing condo price was $199,400 in September 2008.

Last month, interest rates for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.20 percent, down from the average rate of 6.38 percent in October 2007, according to Freddie Mac. FAR’s sales figures reflect closings, which typically occur 30 to 90 days after sales contracts are written.

Among the state’s large to medium-size markets, the Miami MSA reported a total of 453 homes sold in October compared to 367 homes a year ago for a 23 percent increase. The existing home median sales price was $246,800; a year ago, it was $354,800 for a 30 percent decrease. In the year-to-year comparison for the existing condo market, a total of 439 units sold in the MSA last month, up 1 percent compared to 436 condos sold the previous October. The market’s existing condo median price was $197,400; a year ago, it was $268,300 for a 26 percent decrease.

Courtesy: FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS © 2008 http://www.floridarealtors.org/NewsAndEvents/n1-112408.cfm

Home Sales Up, Prices Down in South Florida

Realtors: August home sales up, prices down in South Florida
Reprinted from The Miami Herald
BY Matthew Haggmann

South Florida home sales jumped in August amid signs that lower prices are drawing buyers back into the region's long-struggling housing market.

Sales of existing single-family homes in Miami-Dade County increased 22 percent and Broward County sales increased 12 percent compared to the same period a year ago, according to numbers released Wednesday by the Florida Association of Realtors.

Condominium sales were up 13 percent in Miami-Dade, while condo activity in Broward for the month was even compared to August 2007.

A big reason for increased sales appears to be healthy price drops. Prices were at least 20 percent lower in August than a year ago for single-family homes and condos in both Miami-Dade and Broward counties.

The median price for a Miami-Dade single-family home was $276,000 in August, amounting to a 30 percent drop from last year. For Broward single-family homes, the median price was $269,800, down 27 percent.

The median condo price in Miami-Dade was $210,400; it was $133,300 in Broward.

The outsized inventory of residences for sale also declined in August. Market watchers say the number of homes on the market must shrink significantly -- creating a better balance between buyers and sellers -- before prices start rising again.

The South Florida results were in contrast to the rest of the country.

Nationally, sales of existing U.S. homes fell by 2.2 percent in August, though the number of unsold homes on the market also dropped sharply from the previous month's record high.

The National Association of Realtors said sales fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.91 million units, from an upwardly revised pace of 5.02 million in July. Sales had been expected to fall by 1.6 percent, according to economists surveyed by Thomson/IFR.

The median price of an existing home dropped to $203,100 from $224,400 a year ago. For single-family houses, the median price dropped 9.7 percent, the biggest decline since records began in 1968.

Resales account for about 90 percent of the market, while purchases of new homes make up the rest. Sales of existing homes are compiled from contract closings and may reflect contracts signed one or two months earlier.

There were 4.2 million unsold homes on the market, a 7 percent drop from the record set in July. It was the steepest drop in inventory since December 2006.

Reprinted from the Miami Herald: http://www.miamiherald.com/business/real-estate/story/699288.html