Tag: Selling Real Estate

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Buying Coconut Grove Foreclosures Neighborhood News Selling

What Is Going To Happen To The Miami Real Estate Market In January?

I have had several long-time customers ask me what I think is going to happen to the Miami real estate market come January.  Although I don’t have a crystal ball, and the real estate market in Miami in general has been doing well with inventories down and prices up,  with bidding wars happening as multiple offers come in, I decided to use a building that I am currently working on to throw a bit of a reality check into the current market euphoria.

2734 Bird Ave., Coconut Grove

In October of 2011, one bedroom units in this building were selling for between $45,000-$50,000.  The last sale this year was for $90,000 and there are multiple offers on a foreclosure listed for $99,900.  According to property tax rolls, nine out of the 39 total units in the building are in some stage of foreclosure.  Whether or not any or all of them will go into foreclosure, short sale, or have a loan modification worked out, is yet to be seen, but if you look at the iMapp, Inc.  snapshot of what is going on around this building, I have to believe that there are still going to be buying opportunities out there next year and that prices could go down.  All of those little hammers are properties that are in the foreclosure process.  Since the process takes over a year, where these all are in that process and how fast they come on the market will all come into play in the supply and demand cycle of 2013.

Foreclosure Around Bird Ave in the Grove

Not all markets look like this.  Brickell has a lot less hammers.  If you are a buyer, find out what the foreclosure map in the area you are considering purchasing looks like.  Don’t be discouraged, just be realistic in your offer and your expectations as to where the market really is.  If you are a seller, you also need to look at the map in your area.  The map, along with relevant sales in your area, will help you set your list price in a range where your property will sell.  Whether you are looking short term or long term, your perspective on where the real estate market is headed in 2013 depends on whether you are a glass half full or half empty person.  Oh, and then there is the fiscal cliff…. Where do you think Miami’s real estate market is headed?

 

 

 

 

 

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Selling

Ready To Sell? Fight The Urge To Wait Until Spring And List Now.

Contrary to popular belief that listing a property over the holidays is a bad idea because people don’t buy during the holiday season, now is a great time to list if you want to sell.  There are several reasons this is true:

  1. Only serious buyers are looking for properties during this time
  2. Low inventories mean buyers have less to choose from and sellers have less competition
  3. Pent up demand resulting from the financial and real estate crisis means more buyers are looking
  4. Increasing rents means properties are in high demand
  5. It is a busy time in South Florida and there are plenty of out of town buyers visiting
  6. Your home is probably decorated for the holiday season and will show beautifully!

 

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Selling

Thinking of Short Selling Your Property? Now May Be The Time….

Many homeowners who are under water have been thinking of short selling their home because they have not been able to negotiate a loan modification with their mortgage lender.  If you are one of them, now may be a good time for several reasons.

  1. Banks are more willing to work with a short sale than they were just a year ago.
  2. A short sale is less damaging to your credit than a foreclosure.
  3. Inventory is low, so your property has a better chance of selling as a short sale now than it did last year.
  4. Although Congress is expected to extend a 2007 law that allows homeowners to avoid paying taxes on forgiven debt for their primary residence, it will expire at the end of this year if Congress does not act.
  5. It takes a lot longer than a normal sale to complete a short sale.  If it is an approved short sale, 2-3 months.  If it is not approved, significantly longer.

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Buying Selling

EWM Is On The Technological Forefront Again

EWM is the only company in South Florida that has a rapid form of response for every online inquiry.  

What does this mean if you are a seller?  All inquires on your property are answered immediately by our EWM Customer Care Team. Since 90% of buyers start their home search online, having a quick response time when they are looking at your property on our website is vital to capturing their interest and getting them to visit your property.

 

 

 

If you are a buyer searching online for a new home, nothing is more frustrating than finding one that meets your criteria only to not have your request for further information ignored.  EWM’s Customer Care Team ensures that you receive an immediate response.

This is the newest generation of online lead management and we are happy to be on the forefront! 


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Buying Investment Real Estate Selling

Summer Is Almost Over, Will The Miami Real Estate Slow Down?

In most markets in the country, Labor Day is the official end of summer because children are back in school and the weather starts getting cooler.  Along with students settling in their seats, the real estate market also starts to slow down since parents try to make their move to align with the start and end of school.

As anyone who lives here will tell you, Miami is not like most cities in the country about anything and real estate is no exception.  We actually have two real estate markets, the “traditional” one that is from Spring to Summer and the “snowbird” market that is from Fall to Spring.  So basically, year round!

With the huge number of sales we are posting in 2012 and the amount of cash that is still out there, I do not see the market slowing down.

If you are a seller that had been considering selling but were holding back until prices came up, now is a good time to list your home.  Inventory is down, demand is up, and prices in many of our neighborhoods have increased.  If most sellers wait until the “traditional” listing season, you will have more competition next Spring.

If you are a buyer, know that competition is tight.  You are going to need to be prepared if you want your offer to be accepted.  If you are not paying cash, be pre-approved for a mortgage.  The more money you put down, the stronger your offer will be.  Know the market and the listing history of the house you are putting an offer on.  If the house is price well based on relevant sales in the neighborhood and the house has not been on the market long, don’t make a lowball offer.  It isn’t the buyer’s market it was two years ago.

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Buying Selling

Latest Technology Is Paramount In Today's Real Estate Market

Professional Forms From FAR

Gone are the days of having to receive paperwork via e-mail (or fax!), print it out, sign it, scan it, pray all of the pages scanned correctly and e-mail it to next party, who has to go through the same process, before the executed contract comes back completely illegible.

Not only does e-signing make for much neater contracts, it also expedites the offer-to-executed-contract process.  As a buyer or seller, you no longer have to be waiting by a printer, fax machine, or scanner.  You just open the file, acknowledge that the electronic signature is legally binding, choose your signature, and sign, initial and date where indicated with the click of a key stroke!  As soon as you are done, the program automatically sends it to the next person for their signature.

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Buying Selling

Latest Technology Is Paramount In Today’s Real Estate Market

Professional Forms From FAR

Gone are the days of having to receive paperwork via e-mail (or fax!), print it out, sign it, scan it, pray all of the pages scanned correctly and e-mail it to next party, who has to go through the same process, before the executed contract comes back completely illegible.

Not only does e-signing make for much neater contracts, it also expedites the offer-to-executed-contract process.  As a buyer or seller, you no longer have to be waiting by a printer, fax machine, or scanner.  You just open the file, acknowledge that the electronic signature is legally binding, choose your signature, and sign, initial and date where indicated with the click of a key stroke!  As soon as you are done, the program automatically sends it to the next person for their signature.

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Buying Selling

How Do You Feel About Third Party Real Estate Sites As A Buyer Or Seller?

Edina Realty, a Minneapolis-St Paul real estate subsidiary of HomeServices of America, Inc., has decided to stop syndicating its listings to non-brokerage sites, such as Realtor.com, Trulia,  and Zillow.   Edina’s arguments are outlined in Inman News and bring up some interesting concerns regarding “advertising” on third party sites.

I work with several buyers and tenants who use third party sites to search for properties or obtain market information and I often do have to explain to them that the information they have gleaned from the site is incorrect, out-of- date, or not exactly reflective of what is happening in the local market.

For my sellers and landlords, I do put my listings on third party sites because I feel like the more eyes that see the listing the better the chances of selling that listing are.

What are your experiences with third party sites?  If you are a seller, would you list with a brokerage that does not participate with third party sites?

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Buying Foreclosures Selling

Miami Real Estate: Inventory Low, Prices Increasing

Further evidence of the improving Miami real estate market can be seen in EWM’s Coral Gables office sales for last week.  The total of sales and leases was $20,484,380.  Residential sales represented 90.5% of those transactions.   The total for all of EWM’s Miami Dade County offices was over $36,000,000.

Today’s Miami Herald article, “South Florida’s real estate market looks hot again” summarizes the market gains.

 

Categories
Buying Selling

The National Association of Realtors Rallies Congress on Real Estate Issues

Today the National Association of Realtors will be in Washington DC to address several real estate issues that Congress is contemplating to address the federal deficit.  Some of the issues being addressed include:

  • Mortgage Interest Deduction: long enjoyed by homeowners, this deduction has been recommeded to be eliminated as part of  large tax reform proposal
  • Capital Gains – Exclusion on Sale of Residence:  reducing or limiting the capital gains exemption ($250,000/$500,000) on the sale of a home is also being discussed.
  • Property Tax Deduction:  possibilty that current deduction would be reduced or eliminated.

NAR is tackling other issues as well via their 2012 Federal Public Policy Priorities.