The Real Estate Mango

Archive for January, 2012

Real Estate News From South Florida

STRONG SALES IN THE LUXURY CONDO MARKET IS HERE TO STAY FOR NOW!

In 2011, luxury condo resale activity jumped by 29 percent according to Condo Vultures. But while foreign buyers, with strong currency drove the market last year, indications are that the market is here to stay for now.

There is a wave of new developments like the proposed Porsche Tower for Sunny Isles B each.

The high rises in Sunny Isles Beach have been selling steadily and for good prices all last year and the thriving beachfront is reason to hope that South Florida’s condo market will continue to do well in 2012 as well. 

FORECLOSURE SALES IN THE TRI COUNTY AREA FELL BY 25% in the third quarter of last ear according to data from Realty Trac.  This was a symptom of foreclosure freeze of 2010.

However this freeze may be thawing and forecosures will be flooding the market with prices declining in face of the rising inventory levels.  These forecosures will be in the single family market as well as in the condo market.

This will present itself as a good time to buy. Opportunities will abound with affordable prices and attractive properties. 

Well, that’s it for now.  I will keep you posted as new information is available.

 

BELLINI….NEWEST AND LAST HIGH RISE DEVELOPMENT IN WILLIAMS ISLAND

WILLIAMS ISLAND IS BUILDING THE BELLINI ON THE LAST REMAINING RESIDENTIAL SITE AND IT IS A BEAUTY!

I was invited to a presentation breakfast this weekand listened to the descriptions of the units and this is what I came away with.

For those of you who need an exclusive, boutique style building with only 70 residences, this 24 story building is for you!!

These apartments are large, 2300 square feet to 2700 square feet, each with 3 bedrooms and 2 1/2 or 3 1/2 baths.

The top two floors will have extraordinary penthouses that will each encompass nearly 5000 square feet.

Poggenpohl kitchens and marble in baths and granite counters in kitchens, private elevators and 10 foot ceilings and hurricane-rated impact resistant glass,

SO many amenities….24 hour concierge, 2 story lobby, fitness center, media room, Kid’s game room, beautifully landscaped sundeck with resort style pool and spa and a large cabana area, all overlooking the Williams Island Marina.

Bellini will be a wonderful addition to Aventura with completion scheduled for 2013.  Remember the best apartments will be sold first, so if this seems interesting to you, call me as soon as possible to see the property floor plans.

 

WHAT IS MERS AND HOW CAN IT HELP THE HOUSING MARKET?

First, let me define MERS….Mers is an innovative process that simplifies the way mortgage ownership and servicing rights are originated, sold and tracked.  Created by the real estate finance industry, MERS eliminates the need to prepare and record assignments when trading residential and commercial mortgage loans.

NOW THAT WE HAVE DEFINED IT…LET’S UNDERSTAND THE UNDERLYING CONDITION THAT LED TO THIS PROCESS.

The mortgages that are written to this day, are sold to service providers (these are the banks that collect the payments) who ultimately sell them to other service providers.  All this in the effort to make money on these sales.  Finally, these loans are sold to Wall Street firms that package them and sell them as investments.

When homes sales began declining and some were worth half of the original price, many banks could not even locate the original loan in order to make modifications or to prove how much was owed in back payments.  Paper, paper, everwhere and not a piece that was the right one.

MERS COMES IN….THIS IS AN ELECTRONIC  SYSTEM OF TRACKING THE ORIGINAL MORTGAGE NO MATTER WHERE IT WINDS UP. 

Until this system becomes the only way of doing mortgages, we will not get out of the lengthy foreclosures still waiting to be finalized.  Once these mortgages are dealt with and either saved or completely foreclosed and back on the market for sale, the housing slump will hang around for a long time.

The U.S. government would have to make this a mandatory way of doing business for all l banks and mortgage lenders for this to be effective.  Let’s hope this happens!

Just thought you should know.

 

 

 

AVENTURA REAL ESTATE NEWS 2012

First I want to wish all my readers a HAPPY NEW YEAR!  I know it’s a little late but still, it’s still January!

 

There is good news going into 2012….real estate inventories are shrinking.  Every week, we see more and more condos and homes being bought.  In fact, in Golden Pointe, in the Waterways, nine units were sold in the past year after a long dry spell.  These were all waterfront townhouses.

These homes ranged from 1900 square feet to 2500 sq. feet and many of them needed complete updating.  Buyers found them very desirable because of the great location, quiet, yet close to everything.  Also I must mention that another great incentive was the low mortgage interest rates

 

THE NEXT GOOD NEWS IS THAT BUYERS FROM BRAZIL AND CANADA ARE BUYING OUR PROPERTIES QUICKLY BECAUSE BRAZIL IS EXPERIENCING AN ECONOMIC BOOM AND CANADA’S EXCHANGE RATE IS VERY FAVORABLE TO THEM..

According to the latest studies, real estate appreciation will start to show up in the next three years.  There is a light at the end of the tunnel! WHILE PRICES ARE STILL SOFT, NOW IS THE BEST TIME TO BUY!  TAKE A LOOK AT MY INVENTORY AT THE TOP OF THIS PAGE AND CALL ME TO SHOW THE ONES YOU WANT TO BUY!!