SI Real Estate Tampa and The Beaches

Continued signs of a market that is in recovery are being brought into light more and more nationally and locally. A recent study conducted by the National Association of Realtors showed improvement in 74 out of 146 areas as it relates to median sales price. The best performing district was in Cape Coral Florida, which is not too far from the Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater tri-city area. The Gulf Coast of Florida was amid the top performing markets in the U.S. The last quarter of 2011 showed 29 areas that displayed signs of improvement, so the year has started better than the last ended. The same report showed that at the conclusion of the first quarter, 2.37 million previously owned homes were for sale, which is down 22% from last year. Real Estate inventory in many cities is dwindling. No longer are offers to purchase being accepted just because they were exactly at the listed price. “Highest and best offer” is a term that sellers may find themselves using more and more...

When the topic of real estate has come up in conversation with friends, family, or coworkers, you may want to listen up and chime in next time it happens. HousingWire reports that fixed rate mortgages have hit a new all time low at 3.84%! Not only is 30 year FRM dropping, but 15 year FRM are too. A popular financing choice by many, 15 year FRM has dipped down to 3.07%. Both rates are lower than previous months and lower than the previous year in that respective month. Just the facts: Home affordability is also at an all time high, home buyers are actively entering the housing market in search of great real estate values. The Tampa Florida market is seeing an increase in activity sooner than other cities in Florida. Tampa Bay has seen an increase of about $5000 on average listing prices from last year as well. Many listings are being sold for well above the listing price. Trulia reports that New Tampa communities such as Tampa Palms, Hunters Green, and Live Oak are among the most ...

Pending home sales see a 4.1% increase from February to March 2012. These figures have increased 12.8% since last year at this time, which is also the highest it has been since April 2010. Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, says, “The housing market has clearly turned the corner. Rising sales are bringing down inventory and creating much more balanced conditions… which also means home prices will be rising in more areas as the year progresses.” This information is simply information, unless you use it to your benefit when mapping out your Real Estate Goals. Call SI today to talk about how you can take advantage of a changing market!

A recent study conducted by the National Association of Realtors shows that housing affordability has been at an all time high thus far through 2012. The Housing Affordability Index is relative to median home prices, median home income, and average home mortgage rate. Buying power is the result of a higher index. Here in the Tampa, Florida market, the Housing Affordability Index is higher than most cities in the country. President of the National Association of Realtors, Moe Veissi, says the most recent study highlights the opportunities that more and more people are ready to buy, and some may not even know it. The “100 point” mark is reached when a median income level producing household is ready to purchase a median priced existing single family home. Being that the index is above 200 right now, the majority of Americans have double than what is actually needed to buy a home. Florida’s Bay area, which includes Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Clearwater, is currently at 154.4 as it re...

Florida’s abundance of REO inventory could be a blessing in disguise for national and international real estate investors. According to Core Logic, the single family home rental market is stable and shows a good amount of activity. This has the potential to give these investors return on investments that are far above most in the country. The predictions come from examining the capitalization rates amongst many different markets nationwide, and Florida, coupled with a few states in the mid-west, are at the top of the list. The rates are calculated by assessing the annual cash flow relative to the price at which they purchased the property. This has been our reality and has been relatively stable since 2010 in Florida. A factor that is causing our capitalization rate to increase partly stems from the discounts investors receive when purchasing real estate owned distressed properties, which is usually around 30%. If more sales come to fruition, these discounts could be larger for in...

Do you ever hear someone say, “One day I wish to rent my very own home”? It doesn’t happen! It simply doesn’t exist. Most people today think owning a home makes far more sense than renting a home! In fact, 70% current tenants believe that home ownership is something they definitely would like to be a part of. Many consumers still value the idea of calling a home their own. Fannie Mae’s last quarterly National Housing Survey showed that the desire of home ownership among many Americans still strongly exists. Their findings were quite interesting and may be applicable to the way you feel about purchasing a home. Across a wide range of demographics, the belief is held that owning real estate is preferred over renting real estate. Factors such as school districts and safety were also reasons that influenced viewpoints of home ownership. One would question if so many people want to own, why don’t they? Financial hardships and confusion about the mortgage lending process i...

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