"Because of falling home prices, borrowers who always paid their mortgage but who have run into unforeseen circumstances -- like unemployment or a job transfer -- can no longer sell their homes for what they owe. As a result, they are being forced to short sell or foreclose and are getting caught up in deficiency judgments.

"After the banks foreclose, it's very common now to have large deficiencies with houses not worth the balances owed," said Don Lampe, a North Carolina real estate attorney."

Read more about what can happen to you if your lender lets you sell your home for less than you owe on it. Click on the link below for the whole story. 

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Mortgage-lenders-pursue-cnnm-3107909798.html?x=0

"More misery on the foreclosure front: Lenders filed more than 7,000 notices in November against property owners in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties, according to report from Condo Vultures.

The November tally is a 15 percent increase over November 2008. The region is on pace for nearly 97,000 foreclosure filings this year, up from 75,000 in 2008.

On a related front, Zillow.com said Wednesday that homes in the South Florida metro area lost $45.9 billion in value during the first 11 months of this year, down from $137.2 billion in 2008."

From Sun Sentinel: http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/business/realestate/housekeys/blog/2009/12/foreclosure_filings_skyrocket_1.html

"Existing-home sales bounced back strongly in September with first-time buyers driving much of the activity, marking five gains in the past six months, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Existing-home sales–including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops–jumped 9.4% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.57 million units in September... " RISMEDIA, October 31, 2009

A tax credit of up to $8,000 is available for qualified first-time home buyers purchasing a principal residence on or after January 1, 2009 and before December 1, 2009..... Read more about it at: http://www.federalhousingtaxcredit.com/2009/index.html

If you have a job and have built some credit this may be a great time to buy that home or condo! There a LOT of properties on the market and fewer buyers. Due to all the talk about the poor economy many are waiting to see what will happen next. BUT, if you need a dwelling and want to buy one at a really low price, now is the time.

Check with a good mortgage lender and find out how much home you can afford to buy now.

The real estate slump is ending.

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan says that the worst of the housing adjustment is over and “sales figures have stabilized.” He predicted that inventory levels will come down at a "reasonably rapid pace.”

A home inspection will tell you just how far from perfect that one day old home is and how much aging went on in that 100 year home.
View a virtual home ispection the way it is done by an inspector who is a member of the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI). A home inspection is highly recommended for older homes and brand new ones. Click on this link
http://www.ashi.org/customers/vhi_tour.asp to view the inspection.
Read more about the necessity of getting a professional home inspection in an artlcle by Broderick Perkins at
http://realtytimes.com/rtcpages/20061031_ashiinspection.htm

Even with undervalued prices, the multi-million dollar cost of the replacement properties comes in a game with a higher stake. Players start with $2 million instead of the paltry $1,500 stake in the original game.


Visit the Monopoly site at: www.Hasbro.com

You Might Be A Floridian IF --
"Down South" means Key West
"Panhandling" means going to Pensacola.
Flip-flops are everyday wear.
Shoes are for business meetings.
Sweet tea can be served at any meal.
An alligator once walked through your neighborhood.
You smirk when a game show's "Grand Prize" is a trip or cruise to Florida.
You measure distance in minutes.
You have a drawer full of bathing suits, and one sweatshirt.
You get annoyed at the tourists who feed seagulls.
All the local festivals are named after a fruit.
A hill is any point 50 feet above sea level.
You think everyone from a bigger city has a northern accent.
You know the four seasons really are: almost summer, summer, not summer but really hot, and Christmas.
Anything under 90 is just warm.
You've hosted or attended a hurricane party.
You go to a theme park for an afternoon, and know when to get on the best rides.
You understand the futility of 'exterminating' cockroaches.
You can pronounce Okeechobee, Kissimmee and Withlacoochee.
You understand why it's better to have a friend with a boat, than have a boat yourself.
You were 8 before you realized they made houses without pools.
You were 12 when you first met someone who couldn't swim.
You've worn shorts and used the A/C on Christmas.

Author Unknown

"...A new species of real estate owner has begun to emerge: the marathon seller. Maybe you have them in your community, owners who believe in real estate exceptionalism, the idea that their homes are growing in value while real estate prices all around are stalled or falling.

These owners truly believe that somehow their property is unique and different, a home so wonderful that general sales trends are irrelevant

Compared with last August, in my area we have evolved from a strong seller's market to something which has more balance. Prices are up a touch, but not up insanely. Days on the market have doubled, unit sales are down 20 percent and instead of paying premiums, some buyers are getting "seller contributions" at closing...."

Read the article by Peter G. Miller at: RealtyTimes.

"...Renting out your house by the night or by the week while it's on the market can help cover your expenses until the house/condo sells. It's easy, inexpensive and effective way to market your home," says Christine Karpinski, real estate investor, author and director of Owner Advocacy for HomeAway.com, a network of vacation rental listing websites.

Given the high cost of housing in many regions some potential buyers are turning to rentals and generating a greater demand in the apartment and home rental market, but that's not true of all markets faced with a supply glut.

"New condo owners who are counting on renting their properties to vacationers should be prepared to work harder than might have been necessary even a year ago," said Emily Glossbrenner a partner with Yardley, PA-based FullyBookedRentals.com, a website for resort and vacation rental owners...."

Read the full article by Broderick Perkins at RealtyTimes.com

How do I choose a good management company?

...you want a property manager or management firm that has successfully managed income-producing properties before....
Read the full answer at:
http://realtytimes.com/rtcpages/20060725_askgeorge.htm

... While the city's real estate market is slowing down now, it will pick up steam again as babyboomers retire and land prices continue to fall, Feichthaler said.

Growth in Lee County — up nearly 52 percent from 335,113 people in 1990 to 508,634 — also is increasing pressure to develop Cape Coral and Lehigh Acres, according to van Buskirk's report. People will turn to the platted lands of Cape Coral and Lehigh Acres as developable land in the county disappears under new homes and businesses....

Read the full story at news-press.com

Downtown Dania Beach is finally looking up -- a new U.S. 1 condo would rise 13 stories.

By Ashley Wilson
awilson@MiamiHerald.com

Condominium project would be on the downtown Dania Beach site of the Pirate's Inn property. Downtown Dania Beach, known for its antique stores and seedy hotels, may soon get its first big condominium tower.


To read the full story: Click Here

It's not construction costs that have driven the bay area's soaring home prices. Turns out, it's the ground the homes sit on that's really valuable.

Read the rest of the story at http://www.sptimes.com/2006/07/08/Business/Dirt_rich.shtm

....“We’re going to break all records,’’ Carr said this morning.

Part of the rush is in home-building as the city annexes more and more land. City officials say about 9,000 new houses have been proposed in the city of about 33,000 residents.

Building permit activity is considered a key indicator of economic health.

Excerpt from an article at www.tbo.com by Dave Nicholson

Neighbors pitted against neighbors trying to sell their homes.

"...Competition is stiff. Inventory is at an all-time high — 50,000 homes for sale in Lee County, according to McWilliams.


"Between 2001 and 2005 any Realtor will tell you that there were substantially more buyers than property," McWilliams said. "Now people are taking their time to buy."


Note: Fort Myers is in Lee County.


Read the rest of the story at http://www.lehighnewsstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?
AID=/20060521/NEWS01/605210428/1075

To look at homes for sale in Fort Myers click on this link http://www.amstarrealty.com/fort_myers_florida_real_estate.htm