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Buying Foreclosures Selling

Are Recent Improvements in Home Sales and Median Prices Here to Stay?

Both on a national and local South Florida level, home sales have been improving and in some areas median prices have actually been increasing.  Although we have been seeing a trend in increasing sales and decreasing  inventories in Miami-Dade County, Moody’s Investor Services estimates there will be an additional 8% decrease in home prices in 2010 due to an increased number of foreclosures, short-sales, and deeds in lieu of foreclosure sales that will be coming on the market.  Moody’s estimates are based on loans that are currently in some form of modification process but that will not be eligible for permanent modification.

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Foreclosures Mortgage information

Are You Eligible For a Loan Modification?

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Buying Foreclosures Selling

Home Foreclosures Expected to Continue in 2010

The good news is that sales on existing homes, both single family and condos, continue to increase and inventories are decreasing in Miami-Dade county.

The bad news is in the foreclosure numbers for 2009.  The numbers include all properties that are in some stage of the foreclosure process.

  • Palm Beach County – 30,870
  • Broward County – 69,633
  • Miami-Dade County – 72,391
  • Monroe County – 1,275

Since the unemployment rate is so high in Florida, foreclosures are expected to continue to add to inventories on the market in 2010.  Miami-Dade’s new on-line foreclosure program and the government’s Home Affordable Refinance Program should help keep the foreclosure rate lower than 2009’s.

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Buying Foreclosures Market Summary Mortgage information

7 Reasons to Buy Real Estate Now

met 1 & 2Okay, you have been hearing that now is the time to buy a home, but maybe you are still unsure of why, when there is so much inventory on the market and so much insecurity in the economy.  Here are 7 specific reasons:

  1. Home Buyer Tax Credits – The Government is paying first-time home buyers and move-up buyers money to purchase a home.  It can be a single family home or a condo, it just has to be your primary residence.
  2. Interest rates are still at historic lows, currently around 5.25% for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage.
  3. Lenders are moving their inventories of foreclosures and are becoming more likely to agree to short sales.
  4. Interest rates will increase due to the huge amount of government debt.
  5. The median price of a single family home is currently $185,000, down from a median price of $400,000 at the peak of the real estate boom.
  6. There is currently a 10 month supply of single family homes in Miami-Dade County, down from a 24 month supply at the end of 2008.  A stable market has an inventory of 6-9 months.
  7. There has been a 29% increase in sales since last year.
  8. Whether single family or condo, under $300,000 or over $1,000,000, the market trend has been a steady decrease in inventory since at least October of 2008.

Now, you may be a naysayer and agree with someone who stated that the price of real estate is going to go down another 33%, but those of us that are active in the market are not seeing it.  We are seeing inventories decreasing, foreigners and investors coming back into the market that they had shied away from during the boom years and buyers getting some very good buys.  Miami is on sale and many properties are selling for less than what it would cost to build the exact same structure on the same lot.  Are you going to be someone who says, “Shoulda, woulda, coulda” or someone who feels lucky that they got into the market when they could?

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Buying Foreclosures

Miami Foreclosures Now On-line

In an attempt to work through the more than 110,000 open foreclosures and the 7,000 new ones that are filed each month, Miami-Dade County has put them on-line.   Registration is free and allows you access to the county’s foreclosures.  If you want to bid, you will be required to put down a refundable 5% deposit.

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Brickell/Downtown Miami Foreclosures Neighborhood News

Icon Brickell To Be Turned Over To Lenders

Icon Brickell, the three-tower 1800-unit complex with views of the Miami River and gorgeous grounds is being turned over to the developer’s lenders in a friendly foreclosure.  Only two of the three towers have been built.

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Foreclosures

Happy Holidays from Citigroup

Citigroup announced that it will suspend foreclosures for the next 30 days in order to work on long-term alternatives to foreclosure.  This will be happy news to an estimated 4,000 borrowers.

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Foreclosures

Foreclosure Numbers Show We Still Have A Long Road to Recovery

Although national foreclosures in November were down 8%  from October, they are still up 18% over last November.  With Florida in second place behind Nevada in having the highest number of foreclosures, we are still a long way off from being able to say the market has recovered.  Recent decreases in inventory and increases in sales are all good signs that we have turned the corner, but a recent article in Forbes highlights some of the issues we still face and lists the 10 markets where they believe the market is turning around.  Not surprisingly, none are in Florida.

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Buying Foreclosures Miami Beach

Miami Beach Condos – Best Buys under $300,000

Even though the week of Thanksgiving normally kicks off the “slow” time for most real estate sales, in Miami it often kicks up the second high season.  With the opening of Art Basel, Miami this week and the start of winter up North, traffic increases again, especially for condos on the beach.  Here is a run down of some of the best buys for one and two bedroom condos on Miami Beach, all in waterfront buildings.  Since most of the current sales are under $300,000, I started there.  The listings from 1980 – current include all waterfront buildings whereas those from 1979 and older are only oceanfront and direct ocean views.  The bulk of the condos are from 1960-1979.  To view additional pages, click on the arrows at the top left hand corner.  To view additional pictures for any particular listing, click on the number box inside the first picture.

Under $300,000 built after 2000

Under $300,000 built 1990-1999

Under $300,000 built1980-1989

Under $300,000 built 1970-1979

Under $300,000 built 1960-1969

Under $300,000 built up to 1959

Go to Property Search to look for properties in other price ranges.

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Buying Foreclosures Selling

Miami Foreclosures – Down For October But Probably Will Increase

Although the number of homes in foreclosure decreased in October from the same time last year, the overall number of foreclosures are still high and some experts think it will rise.  According to RealtyTrac, there were 7, 741 foreclosures in Miami Dade as of October.  Most of the first round of foreclosures were sub-prime and adjustable-rate mortgages that became unaffordable once interest rates reset.  The potential for another round of foreclosures is due to the large amount of negative equity many people currently have in their homes and the high unemployment rate, 11.3%, in Miami-Dade County.

This new round of foreclosures will keep real estate prices low, and may push them lower, unless the current sales trend continues and a balance is reached where inventories are stable at a 6 – 9 month supply.  The recently extended and expanded First Time Homebuyers Tax Credit, continued low interest rates and real estate prices that have retrenched, should help keep sales moving and inventories decreasing.  The graph below is for single-family homes and condo sales for Miami-Dade County.  Some areas within the county are already at a 6-9 month supply level.

Single-Family Homes and Condos in Miami-Dade County
Single-Family Homes and Condos in Miami-Dade County