Category: Orlando Realtors

Overseas Demand for Central Florida Real Estate Remains Robust

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Undeterred foreign demand in U.S. real estate has saved realtors from the worries of an under-performing real estate market. The U.S. residential real estate market, though amidst recovery, has been plagued with concerns over slowing rates of property-price hikes and flat sales. Residential properties projected a median value of $198,500 in 2014 – marking a 7.9 percent hike in price. The percentage seems rather small when compared to the previous year-over-year hike of 11.8 percent, a year ago. The sales of existing homes fell seven times in a period spanning eight months and the sales of new homes dropped by 14.5 percent in March 2014.

Market watchers, economists and experts predict improvement

Real estate agents across all U.S. markets agree that sales activity has been low for most of 2014. Experts however believe the market is going to pick up soon enough. According to real estate agents, the on-going creation of new jobs and shopping activity that was overdue to the bad winter weather are two key factors that will promote market pick-up.

Further, the realtors say, increasing inventory would fuel the pick-up. Industry leaders hold that if mortgage rates rise only modestly or continue to dip weekly, as they had for close to three weeks in the April of 2014, the market would witness increased activity.

Economists have added another factor to the pool of events that are expected to cause the U.S. housing market to improve – overseas sales. The strong overseas demand that has been largely undeterred by flat sales rates and low median-price hikes will help the market pick-up.

Orlando real estate industry’s overseas investors pumping the market up

Investment in the U.S. markets has been only growing as investors from different countries across the world continue to be charmed by the prospects of the American market. Asian investors have been particularly interested in investments in the American residential real estate market.

For Central Florida real estate alone, Realtors in Orlando were able to list robust investments from the Asians, Britons, Canadians, Germans, and South American investors apart from other smaller but significant contributions from UAE-based and Swiss buyers. A recent industry, in fact, cited a 350-percent increase in the activity of interested buyers from the UAE and Switzerland.

Further, with improving home equity, experts have projected that the backlog of distressed homes would clear significantly. By the end of 2014, distressed homes would form a single-digit market share. The demand is expected to increase further, during the spring home-buying seasons presenting a great opportunity for sellers to put their homes on the market, according to the top listing agents in Orlando. Motivated by overseas investors, indigenous buyers too can make the best of the spring buying season.

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It’s Time For The Final Walk-through!

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

A final walk-through is not at all like a home inspection or an appraisal. The final walk-through occurs after all the dust has settled from negotiating the price to scheduling inspections, getting the loan approved, etc.  A final walk-through is an inspection usually performed by the buyer and buyer’s agent anywhere from a couple of hours to several days before the closing. I like to schedule final walk-throughs for my buyers 5-7 days before the closing.  

The main purpose of this type of inspection is to make sure that the buyer is getting exactly what was agreed upon by both buyer and seller as well as to check on repairs, if any, that were supposed to have been made by the buyer. It’s the last opportunity for the buyer to walk through the house as the buyer and not as the new owner.  

The final walk-through shouldn’t be skipped by the buyer, it’s never a good idea to assume that things will be the way you expect without verifying, especially with something as important as purchasing a home.      

Here are some tips when it’s time for the Final Walk-through  

Finishing touches- paint

1- Bring a hard copy of this checklist with you so you don’t forget anything.  
2- Check the exterior of the home for new damage, especially if it’s been storming since your last visit.  
3- Turn on the sprinkler system, pool pump, and all exterior lights, and check outlets.  
4-Run all water faucets throughout entire house, check hot and cold. Look under sinks for water leaks.  
5- Test all appliances  
6- Make sure that the seller hasn’t removed any fixtures, chandeliers, etc. they agreed to leave behind.  
7-  Test air conditioning and heater.  
8- Flush every toilet.  
9- Open and close every single window and door.  
10- Check ceilings, walls, and floors for new water stains.  
11- Turn on garbage disposal and exhaust fans.  
12-Make sure any debris has been removed and the home has been cleaned.  
13-Make sure you test any remote controls such as the garage door.  

Take your time!

As an Orlando Realtor, I always stress to my clients that this is one time that you DO NOT want to rush. Spend a good hour or more going through the house that you will call home. The last thing you want to deal with when you move in is cleaning or repairing something that should’ve been done by the seller.

Be sure to take notes about anything you may have noticed that wasn’t the way it was supposed to be and inform your real estate agent. Remember, the final walk-through will be your last opportunity to mention anything that you’re not pleased with before the closing of the transaction.

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Is It The End Of Orlando Short Sales?

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

There’s been a lot of buzz about the current housing recovery in Orlando, many real estate agents feel that these developments mean the end of Orlando short sales.  Speaking as a realtor that specializes in doing short sales, I completely disagree with that, and I’ll tell you why:

 Has The Orlando Real Estate Market Fully Recovered?

It’s true that we are now facing a housing market that’s less heated and moving towards normalcy. Home price increases are driven by market demand as well as inventory shortages. And as far as pricing goes, according to CoreLogic, there was a nearly 12% growth in 2013. However, halfway through 2014, we’re already experiencing a cooling trend overall in Orlando with lower-priced properties in the lead with just 2% growth. All these things can be attributed to rising interest rates, a drop in investor participation, ever-changing short sale rules, as well as increased inventory.

Any active real estate agent can tell you that decreased inventory will lead to higher prices. Then when housing prices increase, it gets people feeling good about the market again which helps to convince homeowners that were on the fence about selling, to put their house back on the market. However, while price increases are encouraging, we still have a long way to get to erasing equity losses from the last decade.

In my opinion, the restart of any housing market is directly related to inventory and that’s why I feel that the current rebirth of the Orlando real estate market is an illusion. If you haven’t heard the term “shadow inventory”, it basically means real estate inventory that’s not yet reflected on the market.

There are several reasons why shadow inventory exists. Here are the most common:

Loan modifications- This is a foreclosure workout program that’s designed to modify the terms of the loan making it more affordable to the homeowner

Homeowners in litigation- These homeowners are in actively litigating foreclosures with their lenders causing the property to be tied up for up to several years in some cases.

Short Sales that have fallen short- Those people that have just given up trying to short sale their home because of an incompetent agent that couldn’t get the job done or a lender that just won’t budge.

Foreclosed properties- This is when a property has gone to foreclosure and taken back by the lender. I believe that this is the biggest reason for shadow inventory. When the lenders take back these properties it can sometimes take up to several years for the property to be put back on the market. Once it’s put back on the market for sale, it’s then considered an REO [real estate owned] property.

 

 

Unrealistic Property Values Not Helping Things

Another major factor that affects housing recovery is the perception of property values. Dealing with hundreds of BPO agents and appraisers [sometimes known as Deal Killers”] I know how much someone’s price opinion can vary from someone Else’s.  It’s not uncommon to find very high and very low comps for most properties. This can be problematic because, with a short sale side, buyers will always try to use the lowest comps to justify buying a distressed property. Unfortunately, in the real estate industry, you just don’t know how things will play out in any transaction which is why you have to be prepared for everything.

 

 Orlando Short Sales Will Be Around For A While

All of the things mentioned previously in this article all play a role in why I think that short sales are here to stay…at least for the next year or two. 91% of our clients are short sale clients and I can truly say that a short sale represents a way out for people, a way to get out of a bad situation and help people to move on with their lives. I also believe that lenders will start to wake up and smell the coffee when it comes to short sales vs foreclosure. Lenders benefit far more from a short sale as opposed to spending valuable time and money on a foreclosure. By allowing more homeowners to short sell their homes, they won’t have to deal with the hassle of getting the property back on the market and hoping to recoup a portion of their money.

 

 

 

Orlando short sale expert

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Loan Transfers, Not Just For Delinquent Mortgages

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Most people are under the assumption that a loan has to be in delinquent status in order to be transferred. The truth is that any loan can be transferred at any time the bank wishes. Remember the fine print that you speed read through at the closing? 

Somewhere in that fine print, it states that your mortgage company reserves the right to sell or transfer your loan at any time they wish after the closing. That means that the lender has the right to sell your loan to another lending institution without your permission.

Usually, mortgage companies will give you a written notice in the mail informing you that your loan has been or will be transferred to the new lender or servicing company.

However, I’ve had many clients tell me that they were made aware of the transfer only through a welcome letter from the new lender. Sometimes loans get transferred multiple times. Just because your loan was transferred once, it doesn’t mean that it won’t get transferred again…and again, etc.

Unless you pay off your loan in full, you will never have control over who controls your mortgage.

Mortgage Transfers Are Especially Challenging for Short Sale Realtors

For real estate agents like myself that specialize in doing Orlando short sales, this can be an extremely frustrating situation. You can have hours, days, weeks, and even months invested in a short sale file then… WHAMMO!!  Out of the blue the loan gets transferred to another lender. It wouldn’t be such a big deal if they would just transfer the complete file over to the next lender so that we could just pick up where we left off. But that’s not the case……that’s never the case!

The new lender requires the agent to submit the entire short sale package again from scratch. The only thing that does transfer over it seems is the pending sale date. So not only are you forced to waste a lot more time submitting the new file, getting a hold of the negotiator, etc. but the sale date doesn’t usually get delayed.

This has happened so many times to me that you wouldn’t bother me any more right? Wrong… this has to be the most frustrating thing that can happen to a short sale realtor especially if you’ve been working the file for several months. However, sometimes it’s a blessing in disguise if you’re lucky enough to get a lender that’s more flexible with their terms or guidelines other times homeowners end up with a lender with a much stricter set of rules.

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New Development at UCF

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

The campus includes a 10-story, $112.3 Million Plaza on University Project

The UCF (University of Central Florida) community is transforming and it is transforming fast. With a host of shops, apartments, and restaurants in the pipeline, the campus community is preparing to charm its residents even more.

What is Underway at the UCF Campus?

In the first stage of development, the university campus will see a new resort-style apartment complex, a Wawa, and a 4 Rivers Smokehouse. It will also witness the rise of a 10-story “Plaza on University”, which is being referred to as the university’s most ambitious project by Orlando real estate industry insiders.

The development of new restaurants and eateries comes as no surprise. The University Boulevard has been adding a new restaurant to its list, almost monthly. In the 24 months since 2012, the campus has become home to more than a dozen new eateries and a couple of shops.

The Plaza building will comprise residential apartments and retail spaces. Projected to cost around $112.3 million, the project when completed would cater to the housing needs of 2,200 university students, with a shopping center and a six-screen multiplex. The Plaza will also house a hot tub big enough to support 15 people, a couple of lap-style pools and resort-style pools as well as video-gaming parlors and lounges.

The Plaza that is expected to be built in the fall will also host Floyd’s Barbershop, Bar Louie, and BurgerFi. Orlando Realtors say that the new development projects have been aimed at turning the university campus into a small city so that students and faculty have access to all amenities.

The Enormous Growth is Both Good and Bad

The eight-year period from 2006 to 2013 was marked by economic turbulence that led to a crisis in the real estate market. However, top real estate agents note that the UCF area grew despite the crisis situation. 40 new residential buildings and around one million square feet of space for commercial leasing were added to the UCF campus – most of which happened in 2006 itself.

In the following years, growth slowed down, but revived in 2013 to reach a five-year high as Surf Skate, Lazy Moon Pizza, Burger21, and other stores were introduced to the campus. While Orlando realtors agree that the new developments have enabled nearly 50,000 people to find jobs in and around the campus.

The sprawling growth also has a downside to it. Locals note that the development is uncontrolled and has begun spilling into other areas of the city life and leading to congestion and traffic problems.

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