Some interesting positive real estate news that I thought I would share. If your thinking of buying your home in the Florida Keys, now may be the time to do it. Please let me know what some of your specifics are and the area your interested in and I'll work to find the right property for you.
Housing may have hit bottom in February
CHICAGO – April 7, 2009 – The chief economist of Mesirow Financial, a $31.4 billion asset financial services firm in Chicago founded in 1937, announced that the housing market probably bottomed out in February and is now on the road to recovery. “An unexpected jump in new and existing home sales, a fairly sharp increase in mortgage applications, and a surprise increase in pending home sales prompted many to declare the bottom in housing in the month of February,” says Swonk. “Even home prices, which had been falling like a rock, showed some signs of stabilizing during the month. Moreover, speculators appear to be re-entering the market, picking up properties on the cheap.”“The housing market is still a long way from healthy: home sales are still down substantially from the lows they hit during the turbulence of the fourth quarter; pending sales were at such low levels, there was really nowhere to go but up; and more than 70 percent of the mortgage applications we saw in March were refinances instead of purchases,” notes Swonk.Swonk says a number of housing market shifts suggest a turnaround has started, including: • Starts of single-family home sales, in particular, are already close to zero and cannot fall much further. Multi-family starts are also exceedingly low and off more than 50 percent from their 2005 high. On net, overall starts are expected to decline again in the second quarter and then begin a gradual rebound in the second half of the year.
Regional differences: The West and the South are expected to remain the weakest markets when it comes to construction activity, since they still suffer from the greatest overhang of vacant new properties.
• Home sales are expected to bottom sooner than starts, which may have also hit their turning point in February, although a safer bet is probably May. Swonk says that’s not surprising given the fact that it’s easier to get a mortgage to buy a home than to get funding to build a housing development.Regional differences: The hardest hit areas in the West, which includes California and Nevada, are expected to post the strongest gains, as they currently offer buyers the best deals from short sales and foreclosures. The Midwest is expected to perform close to the national average, while the South and the Northeast remain laggards.• Prices. Home values plummeted as the economy slipped deeper into recession and credit markets seized last fall. By January, most indices were showing double-digit declines from a year ago. The best bet is that prices will end the year lower than during the bulk of 2008, but will come up slightly from the lows of the first quarter.
Regional differences: The Northeast is expected to experience the greatest downward pressure on prices, as it was late into the correction. Declines in New York could be particularly large as the number of foreclosures balloons. The downward pressure on prices in the South, particularly in Florida, is also expected to remain fairly intense, given the overhang of vacant homes.
“Housing is expected to swing from a drag to a push on overall GDP growth in 2009, for the first time in four years,” says Swonk. “That shift, coupled with tax incentives to lower the carbon footprint of individual homes, is expected to provide a boost to spending on everything from furniture and appliances to building materials. Any gains that we do see in housing and housing-related activity, however, will pale when compared against previous recoveries.”© 2009 FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Rob Skeel , Realtor
Cell --305-393-6300
Email--mailto:Email--rob@robskeel.com
Century 21 Keysearch Realty--800-541-5019
Web Site-- http://www.robskeel.com/
Green Certified Real Estate Professional, FHA Certified
Find a Home http://robskeel.com/homes_for_sale.shtml
BLOG http://floridakeysrealestatebyrob.blogspot.com/
I really appreciate your referrals!
Monday, April 13, 2009
Monday, April 6, 2009
Six reasons why it’s still a good time to buy
If your on the fence thinking about buying a home or not, here is some food for thought.
NEW YORK – March 31, 2009 – The housing market is looking healthier. Here are six reasons why now is the time to jump into the market.
1. Uncle Sam is willing to help. First-time buyers (defined as anyone who hasn’t owned a home in the last three years) are entitled to a maximum $8,000 tax credit; interest rates are at record lows; and the Federal Reserve is doing its best to make mortgage loans available.
2. People have to live somewhere. About 800,000 new households are formed each year in this country, ensuring that the housing market will tighten, even if the economy doesn’t soar.
3. Borrowers leverage their investment. If you put $10,000 into the stock market and it earns 10 percent, you’ve earned $1,000. If you put $10,000 down on a home and its values increases 10 percent, you’ve made $10,000.
4. When prices come back up, you’ll have instant equity. In parts of the country where foreclosures have driven down prices, better times will mean the price of the home you buy will rise rapidly.
5. Mortgage costs stay the same. If you get a fixed-rate mortgage, the monthly payment stays the same – while everything else, including rent, goes upward.
6. You own it. There is something comforting in the notion that your home is your own. You can paint it any color you want, let the dog run in the back yard and hang a swing for the kids in the front. The Wall Street Journal, June Fletcher (03/27/2009)© Copyright 2009 INFORMATION, INC. Bethesda, MD (301) 215-4688
Rob Skeel , Realtor Cell --305-393-6300 Email--rob@robskeel.com
Century 21 Keysearch Realty--800-541-5019
Web Site-- http://www.robskeel.com/
Green Certified Real Estate Professional, FHA Certified
Find a Home http://robskeel.com/homes_for_sale.shtml
BLOG http://floridakeysrealestatebyrob.blogspot.com/
I really appreciate your referrals!
NEW YORK – March 31, 2009 – The housing market is looking healthier. Here are six reasons why now is the time to jump into the market.
1. Uncle Sam is willing to help. First-time buyers (defined as anyone who hasn’t owned a home in the last three years) are entitled to a maximum $8,000 tax credit; interest rates are at record lows; and the Federal Reserve is doing its best to make mortgage loans available.
2. People have to live somewhere. About 800,000 new households are formed each year in this country, ensuring that the housing market will tighten, even if the economy doesn’t soar.
3. Borrowers leverage their investment. If you put $10,000 into the stock market and it earns 10 percent, you’ve earned $1,000. If you put $10,000 down on a home and its values increases 10 percent, you’ve made $10,000.
4. When prices come back up, you’ll have instant equity. In parts of the country where foreclosures have driven down prices, better times will mean the price of the home you buy will rise rapidly.
5. Mortgage costs stay the same. If you get a fixed-rate mortgage, the monthly payment stays the same – while everything else, including rent, goes upward.
6. You own it. There is something comforting in the notion that your home is your own. You can paint it any color you want, let the dog run in the back yard and hang a swing for the kids in the front. The Wall Street Journal, June Fletcher (03/27/2009)© Copyright 2009 INFORMATION, INC. Bethesda, MD (301) 215-4688
Rob Skeel , Realtor Cell --305-393-6300 Email--rob@robskeel.com
Century 21 Keysearch Realty--800-541-5019
Web Site-- http://www.robskeel.com/
Green Certified Real Estate Professional, FHA Certified
Find a Home http://robskeel.com/homes_for_sale.shtml
BLOG http://floridakeysrealestatebyrob.blogspot.com/
I really appreciate your referrals!
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