Category: Orlando Real Estate

Real Estate Development in Orlando

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

A recent and large-scale Orlando real estate development is the apartment complex that will soon come up in Altamonte Springs. A. Charlotte of N.C. development plans on converting an 80-acre area into one of the biggest apartment buildings in Orlando. Top Orlando real estate developers, Crescent Communities LLC, also plan on contributing a 300,000 square feet mixed-use center to the $20.3 million, 249-unit Crescent Gateway Apartments. The development of this center, which will have a  mix of offices, retail outlets, and, possibly, a hotel as well, has a whopping budget.

There is also another real estate development proposal to construct a 450-unit apartment complex near the Orlando Fashion Square mall. This project, however, has raised concerns about increased traffic and congestion in the area.

Benefits of real estate development

The huge increase in Orlando real estate development is sure to generate a good amount of construction jobs for many unemployed workers. The construction of these mega apartment complexes will require huge amounts of manpower, which will in turn, help reduce the unemployment percentage in Orlando, Florida.

Besides creating construction jobs, the 300,000 square feet project which will be initiated in Crescent Gateway Apartments, is sure to provide ample amounts of hotel management jobs, retail jobs and desk jobs at the office. Crescent Gateway will provide a solution to the increasing demand for office space in an under-supplied economy.

More residents will be able to move into luxurious and affordable homes, and facilitate greater community involvement. Other benefits include a higher economic growth rate, better investment, improved lifestyle, and increased home-ownership value.

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Orlando Foreclosure Rates Continue On A Downward Trend

Posted on by Jenny Zamora


CoreLogic has some great news for Orlando realtors and the real estate industry in general. The American business intelligence agency that provides financial and real estate information and analytics to businesses and the feds, reports that Orlando foreclosure rates reduced again in December 2013.

This brings in a ray of hope for real estate agents in Orlando who have been worried for quite some time due to the high rates at which properties in the city get foreclosed. Even with a  decrease in the foreclosure rates in December, Orlando still sports foreclosure rates higher than the national average.

Orlando Foreclosure rate 3.65 percent down from same time a year ago

 

CoreLogic reports that 6.69 percent of residential properties in the Sanford-Kissimmee-Orlando area were slapped with foreclosure in December 2013 – 3.65 percent down from the foreclosure rate in December 2012 (10.34 percent).

CoreLogic, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange as CLGX also reported that the national average of residential-property foreclosures for December 2013 was 2.09 percent. Further, the report also revealed that homeowners of the Metro Orlando area had become more regular with their mortgage payments.

The delinquency rate dropped by 4.53 percent in December 2013. CoreLogic reported an 11.04 percent of mortgage payments coming in later than 90 days in December 2013. A year ago mortgage defaulters in the Metro Orlando area peaked at 15.57 percent.

As is the case with foreclosure rates, the Metro Orlando mortgage delinquency rates top the national average of 5.03 percent this year. Back in 2012, the rate stood at 6.40 percent for the same month.

 

Orlando Realtors Anticipate Improved Sentiments In Near Future

The health of a state’s real estate market greatly influences the health of the overall economy of the state. Listing agents in Orlando reveal that reduced foreclosure rates in Metro Orlando are promising news for the Orlando real estate market because it not only signifies that the housing market is improving, it also helps boost the values of other residential properties.

Add to it the fact that lowered foreclosure, as well as mortgage delinquency rates, are elementary proof that the market is less distressed and the financial status of homeowners is improving.  You’ll know why real estate agents in Orlando are tying this news to the hopes of a stronger market and more buyer confidence in the near future.

 

 

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Orlando Realty Ranks Second In The U.S. with Highest All-cash Sales

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

A recent report by the real estate brokerage firm, ORC, has left Orlando real estate agents reveling. The report, released Wednesday, March 26, listed Orlando second in the US in terms of non-financed sales of real estate in 2013.

ORC’s analysis of the state of all-cash sales in the US

For the analysis, ORC studied all of its real estate transactions over the two-year period, spanning from January 2012 to December 2013. It found that 26 percent of all real estate purchasing done through ORC had been completed via cash. Further, an impressive 25 percent of all residential properties purchased in 2013, through the same firm, had also been completed in cash.

According to the report, the top five metro areas with the highest concentration of all-cash real estate transactions are:

1.    Las Vegas – 48 percent all-cash sales
2.    Orlando – 43 percent all-cash sales
3.    Chicago – 33 percent all-cash sales
4.    Richmond, Va. – 32 percent all-cash sales
5.    Los Angeles – 29 percent all-cash sales

Dynamic market conditions facilitate all-cash purchasing

The trend of making all-cash purchases of real estate properties has been picking up pace over the last few years – a trend that top Orlando realtors have not only witnessed in the Orlando real estate market but also cherished.

Non-financed deals are typically faster to close and preferred by sellers. The Orlando-based firm lists two market conditions as primary triggers of increased all-cash purchases:

    Historically low levels of housing inventory
    Increased investments and investor activities in the housing market

True enough. Investors backed by large institutions possess the financial ability to write checks for homes. With several big-budget luxury residential apartments coming up in the metro area, Orlando real estate agents can expect to bank in all-cash deals in 2014 too.

Residential projects like the $56 million apartment complex at Crescent Central Station, the 800 luxury apartments to be constructed by BentleyForbes Del American, and the Winter Park Village projects, are expected to bring in a lot of business for Orlando realtors. If the trend of high all-cash sales in Orlando continues, 2014 will be a good year for them.

But all is not so well

ORC also found that one in every four sales of real estate properties made by the firm in the two-year period closed as an all-cash deal. Now 1-in-4 appears to be a rather good fraction. However, the fact is that All-cash sales are decreasing in magnitude. Back in 2010, the percentage of all-cash sales was 27. In 2011, it went down to 25.6 percent and has been decreasing every subsequent year.

 

 

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Real Estate Development near Orlando Fashion Square

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Orlando is the hub for Hollywood-based theme parks, amazing nightlife, the world’s biggest multinational companies, and without a doubt, awesome shopping destinations.  The Orlando Fashion Square is one of the biggest and best shopping malls located in downtown Orlando and attracts many locals and tourists from around the world. It also has a cinema multiplex, owned by Premiere Cinemas which opened in 2005.

Orlando Apartment construction proposal near Fashion Square

Due to its prime location, real estate development near Orlando fashion square is on the rise. One Orlando real estate developer was interested in a site for the construction of a 450-unit apartment complex, situated near the mall. However, neighboring residents of Audubon Place condos raised concerns of accumulating traffic. Nearby residents, including city officials, said that traffic and congestion have to be taken into consideration before approval of any new construction, among other factors. Residents also fear that a four-story building will take away that neighborhood feel. Orlando is still deliberating on this subject.

Revamping of Orlando Fashion Square Mall

Orlando realtors are looking to establish a new building by Westin Hotel in the Orlando fashion square mall area, which is inviting a lot of speculation. The entire project, estimated at $25 million, and to be undertaken by UP Development Inc., includes revamping the entire property, relocating tenants, demolishing that area, and building the hotel lobby, restaurants, and a day spa, with the hotel rooms above that. Orlando industrial guru, John Crossman supports the addition of a reputed hotel inside the mall, as nowadays the trend of having boutique stores inside malls is slowly disappearing. Crossman gives three reasons why he believes a hotel inclusion is a smart move for the mall:

•    A hotel attracts more tourists who are willing to spend more money.
•    Hotel visitors are far less likely to return purchased items at the mall due to lack of time.
•    A hotel consumes a lot of retail space which is preferable since there is a lack of retailers.

With the revamp already in place, residents have already begun shifting. During the interior demolition of the mall, some tenants, like the Coliseum of Comics and Champs, were relocated into other spaces. The second story of the mall will now accommodate a new 17,049 square foot Strike Outs bowling arcade and a Hershey’s Shake Shoppe, owned by UP Development. The mall is also partners with Orlando Magic.

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Should Orlando Sellers Get Their Own Appraisals?

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Should I get my home appraised before I get a buyer so that we can make sure it appraises for what we want?”  This is a question I get from Orlando Sellers sometimes and then I ask them… “Would you accept an appraisal that was provided by someone that owns the house that you want to buy?”  Their answer is always…”probably not”.  With all the horror stories about bad appraisals and bad inspections lately being the cause of deals falling apart, I don’t blame sellers for wanting to get their own appraisals or inspections done to make sure they get it right. I’ve been on the receiving end of that scenario quite a few times lately with some of my own clients getting bad appraisals causing deals to fall apart.

Unfortunately, if you’re a seller, getting your own appraisal or inspection done is usually a waste of money. Today’s educated buyer is skeptical of appraisals that are paid for by the seller.  Especially when pre-listing appraisals are ALWAYS above the listing price. You’ll see verbiage like “Appraisal value $350,000 price reduced to $280,000”. When I see things like that it makes me feel like I’m dealing with a used car salesman. The truth is that it’s reduced because the market or buyers don’t agree and claiming that it appraised higher than the true market value will just ruin your credibility.

No appraiser in the world can tell you precisely what a house will sell for when it’s listed. At the end of the day, Appraisals and inspections are opinions just like BPO’s [broker price opinion] when you’re dealing with a short sale.

Here are some things that immediately come to mind when a seller tries to provide their own appraisal.

* Does the seller or listing agent have a personal relationship to the appraiser?

* Is the appraiser credible? What’s his background?

* When EXACTLY was the appraisal done? Is it up to date?

* Who paid for the appraisal?

Orlando Sellers Should Let Realtors Do Their Job

Instead of paying several hundred dollars for an appraisal or an inspection that probably won’t be accepted anyway, why not let the realtor do their job. Orlando real estate agents should be able to give you a very good estimation of how much the house will sell/appraise for.  Realtors have all the tools and knowledge that they need to provide you with good solid figures of how much to list the house for. When doing a comparative market analysis [CMA] they take comparable properties that have been recently sold in the same area. Done properly, the CMA will get you very close to what the house should be listed for as well as what it should appraise for.

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