Archive for March, 2009
Open House Sunday, March 22, Arborwood in Forest Ridge
March 22nd, 2009 categories: Arborwood
2737 Pinewood Court, Davie, FL 33328
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Are We There Yet? My Prediction For The Real Estate Market
March 22nd, 2009 categories: Uncategorized
My fellow Realtors and I have noticed a change in the real estate market lately and it’s looking good. I’m attributing it to the lower interest rates, a surplus of homes on the market, and realistic sellers. Currently I have multiple offers on two of my listed properties. I have always heard that when the market turns upward it will happen much more quickly than when it declines. My prediction is that while we ride out all the foreclosures and short sales there will be little appreciation, but I do believe that sales prices are hovering at the bottom.
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How will a short sale affect your credit?
March 22nd, 2009 categories: Uncategorized
In these times, many homeowners are contemplating how their credit will be affected if they must sell their home as a “Short Sale“.
A homeowner who successfully negotiates and closes a short sale will be eligible for a Fannie Mae backed mortgage after only 2 years. This applies to owners of a principal residence and investors, as well. In comparison, a homeowner who loses a home to foreclosure is ineligible for a Fannie Mae backed mortgage for a period of 5 years and an investor who allows a property to go into foreclosure will have to wait 7 years for a Fannie Mae backed mortgage.
A foreclosure will remain as a public record on a person’s credit history for 10 years or more, whereas a short sale is not reported on a credit history. There’s no specific reporting item for “short sale”. The loan is typically reported as Paid In Full. In some successful short sales, it is possible to convince the lender to give up the right to pursue a deficiency judgment against the homeowner.
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Davie Open House Sunday, March 22, Forest Ridge
March 22nd, 2009 categories: Old Orchard
3138 Peachtree Circle, Davie, FL 33328
This lakefront 4 bedroom, 3 bath home will be open today, March 22, from 1-4 p.m. It features marble floors and a stunning new kitchen designed by Pine Island Interiors.
The home is located in the historic community known as Forest Ridge in the Old Orchard Subdivision in Davie, Florida. Davie is centrally located in the heart of Broward County with easy access to Naples, Orlando and Key West, FL.
The list price is $475,000 and it is being offered for sale by Patti Reid, P.A. with EWM Realtors, (954) 854-6310.
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Trying Times for Appraisers
March 16th, 2009 categories: Uncategorized
So, you’ve got a fully executed contract on a home. Congratulations. Now you will play the waiting game to find out if the home will appraise at the sales price.
These days it is getting harder and harder to know what value the home will be given. Appraisers are often faced with the problem of not finding enough relevant closed sales within a one mile radius. When this occurs they often consider listing prices, but they are also hit or miss, as many sellers overestimate the value of their homes.
Sometimes appraisers will attempt to secure a contract price from a Pending Sale, however most Realtors will not give up that information and many times the Pending Sales never close.
What happens if a lender rejects an appraisal? They can offer a second appraisal (usually at the buyers expense), the Seller can reduce the price of the home or the Buyer can come up with more cash. Many times none of these remedies takes place and the sale doesn’t go through.
When the comparable sales are too old to use for the appraisal, another method has been used called “negative time adjustment”. If prices are falling at an annualized rate of 12% and there is a relevant sale that occured 4 months ago for $300,000, the comp can be devalued by 4% to indicate market decline.
There is also an option called an Automated Valuation Model, which is known as an AVM. That is what you find on Zillow.com and other real estate websites. It is a mathematical formula which examines the sales prices, square footage and recently sold homes. It is usually not up to date and it doesn’t take into account the homes condition, appearance, upgrades or lot location.
Appraisers are being called upon to use every possible method available to not only help home sales but also those who are also refinancing their home. On February 18th, President Obama announced the Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan which is suppposed to help reduce foreclosures and stimulate housing demand. Under the plan, eligible borrowers who stay current on their mortgages but have been unable to refinance to lower their interest rates because their homes have decreased in value may now have the opportunity to refinance into a 30 or 15 year, fixed rate loan. If the the buyer owes more than 105% of the value of the home they won’t qualify.
It is certainly an interesting time for Appraisers and I do not envy their job one bit.
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Forest Ridge Lakefront Home
March 6th, 2009 categories: Old Orchard
3138 Peachtree Circle in Davie, Florida is a house that many would want to call home. 
It features 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, marble floors in the social areas, a beautifully upgraded kitchen, a screened patio with a stunning heated pool and spa, wet bar and outdoor dining room.
The home offers a T-shaped waterview from the entire back of the house. A new seawall has been installed to prevent erosion.
You can view a virtual of this lovely home at www.obeo.com/521804
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Forest Ridge Sales Reflect Trend
March 6th, 2009 categories: Uncategorized
Three and one half years ago, less than 30% of the closed sales of single-family homes and condos within the Broward and Miami-Dade MLS accounted for homes and condos sold for less than $300,000. Today 75% of all Broward and Miami-Dade sales are closing at prices less than $300,000…..with upwards to two thirds of all current closings being either short sales or foreclosures.
The inventory of homes and condos priced less than $100,000 in mid-2005 accounted for less than 400 homes. Currently, in Broward and Miami-Dade, Realtors have over 11,000 homes and condos for sale priced less than $100,000. These numbers account for 17% of our total MLS inventory.
The graph below represents sales in Forest Ridge, based on the average list price and average sales price, according to the MLS.
EWM Realtors, Inc. has launched a new initiative called EWM Smart Living which can be accessed through www.ewm.com. It will showcase listings which are in the $300,000 and under price range and will feature single family homes, town homes, villas and condos. A recent EWM analysis of Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data indicates that more than 45,000 South Florida single family homes and condos are priced less than $300,000. That represents 65% of the total number of homes and condos actively for sale in the Broward and Miami-Dade market, according to Ron Shuffield, EWM President, and all 45,000 listings will be available on EWM Smart Living.
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