OK, so I came home from work today and said to TLW.

"Hey Hun.....I'm home!! I took three listings today. One's a trailer. The other two are short sales with one scheduled for auction on December 28^th. I also submitted three low ball offers for an Investor and finished negotiations on a $10,000 lot deal. The inspection came back on the REO that's supposed to close next Friday and someone has stolen the AC unit and the water main to the house is busted. The buyer that closed two weeks ago called me again to let me know....‘If I knew the gutters were clogged I probably wouldn't have closed on this house. What are you going to do about it?' " 

Some days my job sucks! BUT.......I LOVE it. I'm funny that way. 

How was your day?

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Hi folks, buckle up, it's time for a new market report. I do have some good news this month. The number of properties that have sold has increased quite drastically over the last 3 months. To be exact, sales have increased 35%!!

Inventory has also remained steady with there currently being 1,172 single family homes on the market. This number has been roughly the same for about a year now. However, prices have continued to decline with values dropping 15% since the end of July.  

You can also see from the table below that Bank owned (REO) and short sale properties make up from 80% to 84% of the properties that have sold. This of course is what's causing the prices to continue to drop. 

***This report is for Poinciana Florida neighborhoods and includes zip codes 34758 and 34759 but excludes Solivita, Lake Marion Golf Resort and Cypress Woods. The data was pulled from the Mid-Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service (MFRMLS) on 11-11-2008*** 

Of the 1,172 homes on the market, 765 of them are distressed properties. That's 65% if you are keeping track. AND there are currently 214 properties under contract (pending) of which 174 (81%) are distressed properties. 

The average home that is selling in Poinciana is a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 car garage with 1,769 sq ft of living area and was built in 2000 or later. The asking price was $99,000 and it sold for 96% of asking price ($94,500) at $55 per sq ft. 

Now folks, I am certainly not a soothsayer but I just can't see prices going much lower. Here's a comparison for you. In January of 2001 there were 22 sales in Poinciana Florida. The average house was 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 car garage with 1,495 sq ft living area. The asking price was $84,668 and it sold for 98% of asking price ($83,632) at $54.50 per sq ft. That was 7 ½ years ago!!! 

What does all this mean? First, unless you absolutely have to sell......don't. It is a terrible time to be a Seller. On the other hand, if you are a Buyer, this could be an excellent time to buy a property. Prices are down and you can still get 100% financing in Poinciana Florida. 

So there you have it, Broker Bryant's Poinciana Florida Market Report for November 2008. Any questions? 

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Hi folks. Today, I spoke with Countrywide (CW) about one of my short sale listings. This particular home was placed on the market back in July of this year. I priced it properly and within a few weeks submitted a cash contract to CW for $87,000. Since the 3 most recent sales were for $85,000, $87,000 and $90,000 I figured CW would jump all over this deal and remove their 3^rd party approval so we could move toward closing..... WRONG!!! 

After many attempts I could not even get this transaction in front of a negotiator. I tried and tried and tried but they kept telling me the offer was too low. After about 2 weeks of going back and forth I finally spoke to someone at CW that told me their opinion of value was $105,000 and to resubmit at that price if I wanted it to be accepted. Well the Buyer said "adios" and went and bought another house. This all took place back in August. 

In late September CW contacted me to let me know they had declined the short sale!!! Heeeeeeello.....you had already done that 6 weeks ago!!! 

Anyway......after the contract being declined, in August, I placed the property back on the market, at $105,000, to try and meet CW's expectations of value. Of course that got me exactly where I knew it would.....no where. The property languished on the market with 100s of other over priced listings while the properly priced REOs (bank owned properties) were selling with multiple offers. 

As usual, I started reducing the price every 10 to 14 days to try and find the sweet spot....AGAIN!! This morning, I reduced it to $79,000. Later in the day I contacted CW, as I do every week, to let them know I am still trying to get them another contract and to make sure they haven't set an auction date yet. I was fortunate to get a nice lady, who was very forthcoming with information, so I thought I'd check to see if she would tell me the price that the recent appraisal came back at. 

She placed me on hold and about 10 minutes later came and told me that CW has placed a value of $85,000 on the property!! $85,000!!! I had a cash buyer at $87,000, 3 months ago, and now they tell me $85,000. Holy crap batman!!! 

Folks, you need to buy this house today. Make an offer of $79,000 and my Seller will accept it. Check it out:

521 EAGLE CT KISSIMMEE FLORIDA 34759
$79,000
Listing price may not be sufficient to cover all encumbrances, closing costs, or other seller charges and sale of Property at full listing price may be conditioned upon approval of third parties. Folks.... this is a great opportunity to own a 4 bedroom home in Poinciana for a reasonable price. The house is in very good condition. This is a short sale and will require minimum 60 days to close. Seller will contribute towards your closing cost if the price is right. Ceiling fans in all rooms. Tile flooring through out.

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So the big news in real estate this week is.... "The National Association of Realtors reported that sales of existing homes rose by 5.5 percent from August to September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.18 million units - far better than the flat results analysts had expected. On an unadjusted basis, sales were up 7.8 percent from September last year. But even with the gain in sales, prices kept falling. The median sales price has dropped to $191,600, down by 9 percent from a year ago." (From Newsweek) 

Let's see how this applies to real estate in my market Poinciana Florida. 

In August there were 55 sales in Poinciana Florida. In September there were 66. That's an increase of 17%. Compared to 5.5% Nationwide. OK so Poinciana beat the National average. That's a good thing. 

Now let's compare the other stats. Nationwide sales were up 7.8% compared to same time last year. Poinciana had 26 sales September of 2007 and 66 this September for an increase of 61%. Holy crap!!!!! 

The median price nationwide is $191,600, down 9% from a year ago. The median house price in Poinciana Florida is $105,000 down from $188,000 last September. That's a decrease of 44%!!! That's a 44% decline in value in the last 12 months. 

Let's go back a little further. In January of 2007 the median sales price for a house in Poinciana Florida was $225,000. Today it's $105,000. That's a decrease of 53%. 

Here's another comparison. The median price per sq footage living area right now is $59. The last time it was this low in Poinciana Florida was in 2002. 

There are currently 217 properties under contract (pending) in Poinciana Florida with a median price per sq ft of $55. This means values are still declining. And to top it off...inventory is going up!!! We have 1217 houses on the market right now up from about 1150 30 days ago. 

The increase in inventory is actually interesting since values are down and sales are up. This is a direct indicator of increased foreclosures hitting the market.

Folks, it's been a rough ride for Poinciana real estate. It does look like things are getting a little better though. Values are still declining BUT at least properties are starting to sell. This means values are more in line with what the market will bare. 

Of course, if you bought your house in the last 5 years chances are you have NO equity and may even owe more than your house is worth. So my suggestion is to just sit back and enjoy your home. 

If you MUST sell then give me a call. Together we can figure out a plan to get you out from under your house. Do NOT just walk away or let your house get foreclosed on. Talk to me first so we can discuss your options. I want to help. OK? 

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Hi folks, it seems like just yesterday that my business consisted mostly of listing properties for Mr. and Mrs. Regular Seller. I spent a lot of my time preparing print ads, brochures, virtual tours and making sure I got the properties disseminated throughout the Internet. When I wasn't doing these things I was busy arranging showings, negotiating deals, talking with my Sellers and fielding Buyer calls. Life was good. I was busy helping folks move up or move on. It felt good to help and everyone I had contact with seemed to be in good cheer. 

Now those times are just a memory. The market has changed and so has my way of doing business. I jest with TLW in the mornings saying "I'm heading off to work to try and pull some money out of my &*%!" 

But, I have to say..... I LOVE this new market! It has taken me a while to find my groove and I have had a couple of setbacks BUT things are really starting to come together. My entire focus has shifted. My new focus is now Short Sales, REOs(Bank Owned), Buyers and expanding my business. 

Poinciana Florida Real Estate distressed Sellers and distressed properties make up over 80% of the closed transactions each month. To spend time and money looking for the very few Sellers that have equity and are able to sell makes no sense. 

In fact, let's do the math, for the last 3 months there were 185 sales in Poinciana Florida. All but 36 were either REOs or Short Sales. 

How could I possibly stay in business if my focus was getting a part of those 36 closings? Let me put a little more perspective on this. There are approximately 20,500 homes in Poinciana. Mr. and Mrs. Average Seller are accounting for 12 sales a month. Finding one of these Sellers to work with is literally like finding a needle in a haystack. It ain't happening. 

Now on the other hand, depending on who you listen to, from 10% to 15% of the properties in Poinciana are in some stage of mortgage delinquency!!! Even if I used the 10% figure that means that 2,050 homes in Poinciana Florida will probably be either a REO or Short Sale in the near future. 

Folks, I would have to be a fool to not concentrate my efforts on this part of the market. Short Sales may be frustrating and REOs may be difficult to get BUT, unless I want to spend my days driving Buyers around looking at $80,000 properties, I best become an expert in these areas. And I will. 

So........over the next few months and for several years to come I plan on having tons of distressed property listings. Which also means......I'm going to have to expand my business by hiring REALTORS® to handle all of the Buyers these listings will generate. I've conveniently placed a link down there if you are interested.

My plan is in motion and the stage has been set for a GREAT 2009!!! 

OK, I wrote this post just to show you my thought process and to hopefully get you thinking about your market conditions and your future. If you are just waiting for the market to get back to "normal" you will fail. The old market is gone. What we are experiencing now is.......NORMAL! What say you?

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Hi folks, here is a sampling of "short sales" available through Tutas Towne Realty, Inc. in Poinciana Florida. Did I mention it's 88 degrees and sunny today? 

 This is a Poinciana Florida SHORT SALE and will require 3rd party approval.   Beautiful pool home with ceramic tile flooring throughout, travertine in the master shower, updated fixtures, solar heated inground pool, family room, heavily landscaped lot, new roof in late 2004, new AC in 2001 and much much more. Let this be you own tropical paradise. A place to call home and to build memories. 

$99,000

 Very open floor plan. Tile through out Folks this is a great opportunity to own a 4 bedroom home in Poinciana for a reasonable price. The house is in very good condition. This is a Poinciana Florida short sale and will require minimum 60 days to close. Seller will contribute towards your closing cost if the price is right. Ceiling fans in all rooms. Tile flooring through out.

$89,000

Poinciana Florida SHORT SALE. Folks if you are looking for a well maintained 2 bedroom home with over 1100 sq ft living area then this may be the one. Sits on a a very private back flag lot. New tile flooring in the dining area. Inside utility room, split bedroom plan. And almost a 1/4 acre lot. You won't find a better home for the price. So act today!

$65,000

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Hi folks. Today I want to talk a little bit about credit scores and how they may be affected by the credit crunch we are experiencing. Lenn Harley wrote a post last week that touched down on some of this, titled "ANOTHER DRAG ON THE ECONOMY?? AN UNTOLD STORY. The loss of consumer credit." If you haven't read Lenn's post please take a minute to do so. 

Lenn's post is about the effect of foreclosures, short sales, late payments, etc....on a person's credit score and how this will affect their ability to get jobs, open bank accounts, buy cars, find affordable insurance and so forth. What her post doesn't mention is the negative effect of credit scores for folks that do pay their bills on time. 

Your credit score is based on several factors....including: paying debts on time, amount of debt AND available credit. The last one is the kicker. Having a couple of credit cards is a good thing. Owing more than 50% of the available credit is a bad thing. 

Let's say you have 3 credit cards with available credit of $60,000, but, because you are very good with your finances, you keep your total debt at about 25% or $15,000. This is a good thing. It shows you are able to manage credit in a responsible manner. Now let's say you get your bills next month and the credit card companies have decided to "freeze" your credit at the amount owed or $15,000. You are now maxed out on your credit cards and your credit score will drop!!! 

That's right folks.....you have done everything right and your credit score has dropped because the credit market is in turmoil. Does this suck or what?

I wrote this article in July of 2006. In light of where we are at today I'd say my concerns were valid.

***********************************

No money? No problem.

Negotiated a deal on one of my listings yesterday. The Buyer is purchasing using 100% financing with the Seller paying closing costs. My market is affordable housing with the majority of homes priced from $190s to $250s and it seems like most of the Buyers lately have been purchasing with no money down.

Now don't get me wrong I am in favor of home ownership for everyone but I fear a lot of the Buyers are going to have financial difficulties in the near future. With high insurance costs, property taxes and mortgage payments I am seeing payments of close to $2,000 per month for a starter home. That's a pretty big nut to crack every month, in my area, where most families are regular working class people and don't have any reserve funds if they should encounter a financial setback.

Also, a good number of these purchases are being made with ARMs with the Buyers basing their ability to pay on future raises at work or a part time job that they may or may not be getting. In my opinion Mortgage Brokers and Realtors are being overly aggressive in selling these folks on the advantages of home ownership without really taking the time to counsel the Buyers on the true costs involved. And since they don't have to come up with any money at closing they are sitting ducks for Mortgage Brokers who are charging them sometimes outrageous fees for doing these types of loans.

So my challenge to REALTORS(R) who are dealing with first time Home buyers, with a little or no money down, is to really take the time to explain the pros and cons of purchasing a home. If the Buyers are fully informed and are wanting to move forward then help them to negotiate fees or guide them to the myriad of programs available that can help them with financial assistance. Placing a Buyer in a home he can't afford can damage them for years. It can cause bankruptcies, divorces and even illnesses. So let's "Protect the public" it's what REALTORS(R) are supposed to do.

Hi folks. If you are looking to purchase single family homes, that will cash flow, the time is right. The homes below would rent in the $600 to $650 per month range. With 20% to 30% down each would have a positive cash flow of approximately $100 to $150 per month. There are currently 65 properties on the market in Poinciana Florida for $75,000 or less. Most of these are 3 bedroom 2 bath homes with about 1200 sq ft. 

Check it out: 

3 bedrooms 2 baths with 1088 sq ft of living area built in 2000. Last sold in August of 2005 for $163,500. It is currently back owned and is being offered by First Service Realty, Inc at $44,900!!!

3 bedrooms 2 baths with 1750 sq ft of living area built in 2006. Last sold in February of 2006, brand new, for $198,300. It is currently bank owned and is being offered by First Service Realty, Inc at $63,500.

4 bedrooms 2 baths with 1410 sq ft of living area and a pool built in 1986. Last sold in December 2006 for $182,000. It is currently bank owned and is being offered by Goodwin Realty & Associates at $64,900.

***These properties are not listed by Tutas Towne Realty, Inc but are a sampling of available homes per the Mid-Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service.

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Folks are you looking for your own little piece of Florida paradise? If so this could be the one. Immaculate 3 bedroom pool home on a half acre lot. Extensive landscaping. Extended driveway and separate detached garage/work shop. Very private subdivision. Privacy abounds in this very small and private subdivision near Cherry Pocket. More than 1/2 acre of lush landscaping. Solar heated in ground pool.

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