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?

POINCIANA FLORIDA REAL ESTATE SHORT SALE INFORMATION

POINCIANA FLORIDA REAL ESTATE MARKET REPORTS

CENTRAL FLORIDA REALTOR(r) OPPORTUNITIES

MORE INFO FROM BROKER BRYANT... THE SOURCE FOR POINCIANA REAL ESTATE

Copyright © 2008 http://www.brokerbryant.com/ | All Rights Reserved   

I'm dedicating this post to swimming pools. That's right...swimming pools. We have swimming pools everywhere in Florida. Here is a picture of our pool.

This is what they are supposed to look like, sparkling, refreshing and very inviting. It makes you want to jump in doesn't it? 

Now contrast our swimming pool with these.

This is what pools look like when the property is a REO (bank owned) or a short sale. Not all the time but certainly most of the time. 

Needless to say these can be a HUGE problem. There are probably 1,000s of pools, that look like these, throughout Florida. The first thing that comes to mind is "Mosquito Hell"!!! Not to mention snakes and a myriad of other creatures that we have not been able to identify. Here's an article from The Orlando Sentinel about this issue. 

Another problem we have is the theft of pool equipment and heaters. I met Andrew Cox of Cox Inspections and a fellow ActiveRain member at one of my pending REO properties this morning. Andy beat me there but called minutes after his arrival to ask me where the pool pump, filter and heater were. Beats me. I swear they were there 5 weeks ago when my buyer and I negotiated the deal. Good thing we have the right to inspect and CANCEL!!!

So folks, foreclosures are affecting the market in many ways. Can you imagine living next to one of these pools? 

Oh well....that's all I got for you today. I'm going swimming!!! Want to join me?

Hi folks. Here's an update on the foreclosure situation in Florida. I read an article earlier today on our Florida Association of Realtors website stating that Florida has 77,000 homeowners in foreclosure!!! This is second only to California.  

I also spoke to a loss mitigation negotiator at Countrywide yesterday who mentioned Countrywide, or I guess Bank of America now, has 76% of the Nation's foreclosures and that they are expecting this number to increase in August when ARMs (adjustable rate mortgages) are set to adjust again. EDIT:< Is this figure accurate? I don't know but it does line up with what I am seeing in my particular market, Poinciana FL.>

Then there was a report recently on channel 9 in Lakeland that mentioned one in every seven homes (15%) in Poinciana FL. was in some stage of foreclosure.  

My last Poinciana market report, for the first half of 2008, showed that 70% of the homes that have sold this year were either REOs (banked owned) or Short Sales (pre-foreclosures). It also showed that values in Poinciana are down 48% since late 2006. 

So folks, it is evident that we are in this mess for quite a while. BUT.....there is some help available if you are struggling with keeping your home. 10,000 Attorneys, throughout the State of Florida, have now partnered with Florida Legal Services to provide free legal services as part of an effort to keep Florida homeowners in their homes. Here's what I read today: 

• "Florida Legal Services and the Florida Bar Association have partnered in establishing a toll-free hotline - (866) 607-2187 - that consumers can call. They'll be asked a few initial questions about their situation to ensure accurate placement, and then be sent to a free attorney. The attorney will then negotiate with the lender on behalf of the client to keep the home from being foreclosed." 

I have not called them yet but will early next week to see what additional information I can get. I will be posting it here on my blog so.......ya'll come back now, ya here!!!! How cool is that?

MORE INFO FROM BROKER BRYANT... THE SOURCE FOR POINCIANA REAL ESTATE

Copyright © 2008 http://www.brokerbryant.com/ | All Rights Reserved 

Hi folks. This post is about finding your MoJo. As most of you know, my market, Poinciana FL has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the country. I heard it could be as high as 1 in 7 homes. That's about 15%. So needless to say it has been a very difficult year for selling real estate, thus far. BUT......I'm starting to get my MoJo back!!! 

About 3 months ago I decided I needed to quit my whining about the market and make changes in my business. Based on what was happening in the market I had 3 areas that I needed to concentrate on:

1. Picking up some REO listings.

2. Working short sale listings.

3. Expanding my Investor base and increasing Buyer activity. 

Unfortunately, my attempt to break into the REO business, proved to be an effort in futility. Being a one man office, as I am, this just wasn't going to work out. In my area there are a handful of Brokers that handle REOs and they pretty much have that part of the market tied up. 

So, I decided to put all of my efforts into working short sales and picking up Buyers. And you know what? My MoJo has come back. My attitude is much better and business is great. In fact, I have so much business that we are looking to expand!!! We are taking our office virtual and are looking for at least 10 REALTORS® to join Tutas Towne Realty by the end of the year. If you work the Central Florida area and are looking for a change give me a call. 

Now let's briefly talk about these short sales. First, they can be very frustrating. The Lenders are getting much better but are still too slow for my liking. BUT....short sales are so much easier to deal with when it comes to working with the Sellers and getting the properties under contract. So that balances out the frustrations in dealing with the Lenders. 

One thing I have been doing, that saves a lot of time, is that we do not negotiate the listing price on my short sale listings. What's working for me is to price the properties very close to market value and then reduce by $10,000 every 7-10 days until we hit the sweet spot and the offers start rolling in. Then we just pick the one most likely to close and go under contract. 

Another thing that helps is to make contact with the Lender at time of listing. Be nice. Remember they want the same thing you do.....a successful sale at a reasonable price. Be very straight forward with them and ask them right up front how they want you to handle the deal. If you ask....they will tell you. What I'm finding is that the Lenders are leaning more towards simple right now. I'm currently dealing with 6 different Lenders and 3 of them do not even care to see the Seller's financials. They took the information they needed over the phone. I guess they have finally decided that those 100 page short sale packages were just bogging them down. 

Anyway, this post is getting too long, so I'm going to stop. My point is to make changes in your business if you must. Get out of your comfort zone and go after the business that is out there. Your market will direct you to where you need to be focusing your efforts. We can't change the market but we can "work" the market we are in. Sometimes you just have to lose your MoJo to be able to find it again. Never give up. 

OK that's it for me. I just reread this post and I seem to be rambling today. I must have eaten too many of those darn brownies!!!! What do ya think? 

MORE INFO FROM BROKER BRYANT... THE SOURCE FOR POINCIANA REAL ESTATE

Copyright © 2008 http://www.brokerbryant.com/ | All Rights Reserved

Calling all Investors!! Housing prices in Poinciana Fl. Are low. Real low. In fact, there are about 35 homes, available right now, that are less than $100,000. These are bank owned properties (REOs) and are NOT short sales. This means they can and will be purchased quickly. 

A great example is a 3 bedroom 2 bath home with 1809 sq ft living area built in 2006. This house has never been lived in and is priced at $96,900 or $53.57 per sq ft!!! Folks, that's incredible. You can't build a house for that price. This property would easily rent for $900 per month. I'm also sure that by the time you read this it will be sold. It hit the market yesterday and won't last long. 

This particular house sold for $206,500, brand new, in April of 2006. The person that buys this house will get a great property at a great price. 

Now, in order to purchase a house like this, you have to be ready to make an offer immediately. When I say immediately, I mean immediately. There will be no time to go look at it. That's why we have inspection periods. Usually you will have 7 to 10 days to do your due diligence AFTER you have placed it under contract. 

I know what your thinking, "Broker Bryant how can we buy one of those houses?" Well I'm glad you asked because that's the reason for this post. I'm looking for Investors that want to receive details on properties, like this, as soon as they hit the market. Here's what I'm looking for: 

• Investors with cash, a credit line or mortgage APPROVAL and who are ready to move quickly. 

• Investors that can show cash to close or mortgage approval, in writing, so we can submit it with the offer. Banks will not look at offers without it. 

• Investors that are comfortable making offers without seeing the property first. 

• Investors that have experience and the financial capabilities to carry a property a few months if necessary while a tenant is being found. 

• Investors that are willing to sign a Buyer's Broker Agreement and work with me as their Broker on these specific purchases. I guarantee to work hard and you guarantee that I will get paid. 

Folks, this program is NOT for first time homebuyers. I do have other programs available but this one is not for you. 

If you don't have cash available you will more than likely need 20% to 30% as a down payment plus closing costs. We do have "hard money" Lenders available to assist you if needed. The time to get qualified is now, so, when you see a property you want you are ready to act. Time is of the essence. 

If this is something that interest you then it's easy to participate. Just click the link at the bottom of this post and provide me with your info. I will then contact you so we can discuss your needs. Once we have talked and you are accepted into the program I will start sending over property details as soon as they hit the market. If you see something that fits into your Investment plan just let me know and I will forward over a purchase offer for you signatures. Then the fun begins!!! 

So there you have it, Broker Bryant's Investor Program. Let's buy Poinciana one house at a time. What say you? 

NOW TAKING APPLICATIONS!
BROKER BRYANT'S INVESTOR PROGRAM

MORE INFO FROM BROKER BRYANT... THE SOURCE FOR POINCIANA REAL ESTATE

Copyright © 2008 http://www.brokerbryant.com/ | All Rights Reserved

Bryant Tutas
Broker/Owner
Tutas Towne Realty, Inc
Licensed Florida Real Estate Broker
http://www.brokerbryant.com/
***The content of this blog is solely my opinion*** 

Hi folks, today I want to talk about selling properties in Poinciana FL. It's brutal!!! The problem I'm running up against is Mr. and Mrs. Average Seller are just not able to compete with the wholesale market i.e. banked owned properties and short sales.

As primarily a listing Broker, I have been banging my head against the wall for about a year now. The biggest issue is a lack of equity. Homeowners in Poinciana have lost about 40% in value in the last 15 months.

What this means is most Sellers are just not in a position to sell, unless they are able to bring money to the table or they apply for a short sale. But what if they don't qualify for a short sale? What if they are making payments but need to sell for health, financial or any other valid reasons that are not related to being in a pre-foreclosure situation?

They're screwed! Wanting to help these folks but not being able to is very frustrating. But....I have to try. So we price them as best as we can based on that Seller's particular situation. Sometimes it works.....and most of the time it doesn't. No amount of marketing will overcome pricing.

Unfortunately, I don't see much light at the end of the tunnel, for the near future, in Poinciana FL.

Here are some stats for Poinciana Fl. These stats only include residential properties in the Poinciana neighborhoods and were pulled from the Mid-Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service on 3-26-2008. It's deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

As of today, there are 1323 active listings. 415 of these are either bank owned or pre-foreclosure!! What's interesting is that the average list price for the distressed properties is $154,500 or $88 sq ft living area. For Mr. and Mrs. Average Seller the average list price is $188,804 or $111 per sq ft.

There are 89 pending listings. These are properties under contract that have not closed yet. I'm sure a bunch of these are short sales and may or may not close at all. The average list price for the pendings is $142,800 or $78 per sq ft. Remember the closed price on these pending listings will be lower.

There have been 61 sales since the beginning of the year. 33 of these(54%) were distressed properties and sold for an average price of $144,000 or $78 per sq ft. Average days on market was 109. There were 28 closings for Mr. and Mrs. Average Seller at an a average selling price of $149,000 or $88 per sq ft. Days on market was 143.

So, Mr. and Mrs. Average Seller are getting about $10 more per sq ft BUT it is taking 34 days longer to sell. Assuming of course they are in a position to price low enough to get it sold. Most are not.

Poinciana is averaging 20 closings a month out of a little over 1300 listings. What that means is 98.5% of the listings are NOT selling at all!! These are the facts.

The most active REO(bank owned property) specialist, REALTOR®, currently has 39 active residential listings in Poinciana. I have 16. He has closed on 3. I have only closed on 1!!! Even the wholesalers are struggling in Poinciana FL.

Folks, it just doesn't get much worse than this. My advice is, unless you absolutely have to sell....don't. Unless you are in a position to price lower than the wholesale listings your chances of succeeding are about 1.5%. Those are not good odds.

However, if you MUST sell, then give me call. I'd be happy to come over and assess your situation. Who knows? Maybe yours will be the next listing I sell. And maybe not. It is what it is.

Thank goodness for Buyers and Investors!!!

And that's the way it is in Poinciana FL. How are things in your part of the world?

*****Recent Poinciana Market Reports.

Copyright © 2008 http://www.brokerbryant.com/ | All Rights Reserved

Bryant Tutas
Broker/Owner
Tutas Towne Realty, Inc
Licensed Florida Real Estate Broker
http://www.brokerbryant.com/
***The content of this blog is solely my opinion*** 

FORECLOSURES (REOs) IN POINCIANA FL

Yesterday I wrote a post titled "Buying foreclosures in Poinciana Fl". The post was a little on the boring side but it was written for a reason....Google juice!! I just listed a couple of REO (bank owned) properties last week so I'm trying to attract attention from anyone wanting to buy or sell a foreclosure in Poinciana Fl.

Since ActiveRain has tremendous Google juice I figured a post about foreclosures with a key word rich title would work well for me. Well.....it did!!!

In fact with only one post, posted 24 hours ago, I now have the number one position on Google for the following searches.

• Buying a foreclosure in Poinciana

• Selling a foreclosure in Poinciana

• REOs in Poinciana

• Foreclosures in Poinciana 

• Poinciana foreclosures for sale

• List a foreclosure in Poinciana

• Find a foreclosure in Poinciana

• Sell a foreclosure in Poinciana

Folks, that's incredible!!!! Of course I do have an advantage in that I work a very specific niche market but it will work in yours as well. It just may take a little longer.

My goal is to break into the foreclosure market. Foreclosures are on the rise in Poinciana and I need to get me some of those suckas to sell!! So I'm fishin' for foreclosure business on Google.

Being in the first position for these searches presents me as the expert on foreclosures in the Poinciana area. Even though I am not the top foreclosure expert in Poinciana....yet, being first on Google gives the perception that I am.

And really, perception and presentation, are a big chunk of what we do. It's how we get business. Of course you do have to be able to back it up to keep it. Fortunately for me, I am very good at what I do, so if they call, they won't be disappointed.

Anyway, I wrote this post to show you how strong our blogging efforts are when it comes to Google. Write about what you know and what you do and the business will come.

Now, if anyone wants to buy or sell a foreclosure (REO) in Poinciana Fl give Broker Bryant a call. I'll be waiting.

By the way, can you guess how much that bass weighs in the picture? I caught it yesterday from my back yard. This may be a trick question based on my presentation and your perception. Give it a try. I'll post the answer later.

Copyright © 2008 http://www.brokerbryant.com/ | All Rights Reserved

Bryant Tutas
Broker/Owner
Tutas Towne Realty, Inc
Licensed Florida Real Estate Broker
http://www.brokerbryant.com/
***The content of this blog is solely my opinion***

Hi folks. How often have you had Buyers call you wanting to buy a foreclosure? Usually, when this happens to me it's first time homebuyers who are really just looking for a "deal". Of course many times they also have no money.

When this happens I spend time with them on the phone explaining how difficult it is to purchase a foreclosed property. Not only is it difficult but if it's a "good deal" you are going to need to have strong finances to even have a shot at getting it. Investors buy the "good deals" and they play with cash.

Foreclosures can be a good opportunity to purchase a property below market value but they really aren't for the inexperienced Buyer. If you have no money and need the Seller to pay all of your closing costs, then more than likely, you will NOT get a "good deal" in the foreclosure market. It can be done but you will certainly want to work with an experienced agent and you will want to make sure you have been approved for a mortgage before shopping.

You will also have to move fast. The property will be sold "As Is" with right to inspect. You will want to have it inspected and be prepared to walk away if you are not in a position to pay for repairs. You will not be reimbursed for inspection costs if you don‘t close on it.

Janet Guilbault wrote a post earlier this week about one of the pitfalls of purchasing a foreclosure, the dreaded per diem penalty!!! Unlike a normal purchase, if the closing is delayed the Buyer will be required to pay a penalty for every day the deal doesn't close beyond the contractual closing date. This is usually $100 to $200 per day! And if you can't close it at all......kiss your deposit good bye.

I wrote an offer on a foreclosure property this week for one of my Buyers. The nine page bank addendum, in addition to the per diem clause, also had this little gem in it:

SELLER'S UNCONDITIONAL RIGHT TO CANCEL THE CONTRACT AND/OR ADDENDUM:

AT ANY TIME AFTER THE EXECUTION OF THE CONTRACT AND/OR ADDENDUM, SELLER SHALL HAVE THE UNLIMITED RIGHT AND AT IT'S COMPLETE DISCRETION, TO ELECT TO DEEM THE CONTRACT AND/OR ADDENDUM BETWEEN THE BUYER AND SELLER NULL AND VOID AND NOT CLOSE THE TRANSACTION FOR ANY REASON AND THE PARTIES SHALL BE RESTORED TO THEIR ORIGINAL POSITION AS IF THE CONTRACT AND/OR ADDENDUM NEVER EXISTED.

SHOULD SELLER EXERCISE IT'S DECISION TO NULLIFY THE CONTRACT AND/OR ADDENDUM, THEN SELLER SHALL RETURN THE DEPOSIT AS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH B(5) TO THE BUYER. HOWEVER, IT IS SELLER'S SOLE DISCRETION AS TO WHETHER OR NOT IT WILL REIMBURSE THE BUYER FOR ANY COSTS, AS OUTLINED IN PARAGRAPH 6(B), OR OTHERWISE.

THE BUYER AGREES THAT SHOULD THE SELLER CANCEL THE SALE FOR ANY REASON THAT THEY WAIVE THEIR RIGHT TO SUE FOR SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE AND/OR DAMAGES AND FULLY RELEASE THE SELLER AS FURTHER SET FORTH IN RELEASE CONTAINED WITHIN PARAGARPH W HEREIN.
***********************************************

This clause basically states that the Seller can back out of the contract at anytime prior to closing for any reason at all. They will give the deposit back but may or may not reimburse the Buyer for any costs they have paid i.e inspections, survey and appraisal.

The Buyer is obligated to perform under the contract the Seller isn't.

We removed this clause when we made the offer but the Bank refused to negotiate with us if we made any changes on their addendum. So we put it back in and agreed to it.

Fortunately, my Buyer is very experienced, is paying cash and is willing to take the risk to purchase a property 20% below market value. We can only hope that the Bank doesn't find a better deal before my Buyer has a chance to close. We want to close in 10 days to limit the risk. So we'll see how it turns out.

The point of this post is to be very careful when negotiating on Bank owned properties(REOs). Make sure to read every word of that Bank addendum and make sure your Buyer fully understands what rights they are giving up.

Buying foreclosures can be a good way to get a "deal". Just make sure you know what you are getting into. They are not for the inexperienced. In my market you do not have to buy a foreclosure to get a "good deal". There are better and safer ways to buy Real Estate. Find a good and experienced REALTOR® to help you out. Better yet......call Broker Bryant! Any thoughts?

Copyright © 2008 http://www.brokerbryant.com/ | All Rights Reserved

Bryant Tutas
Broker/Owner
Tutas Towne Realty, Inc
Licensed Florida Real Estate Broker
http://www.brokerbryant.com/
***The content of this blog is solely my opinion***