Tag: Orlando Real Estate Market

Four of the Biggest Investment Sales of 2013 in Central Florida

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

2013 has ended and realtors all over Florida, including Orlando realtors, are looking forward to a stronger market in 2014. The previous year saw some very reassuring investment purchases by major private equity firms. Apart from bringing immediate dollars to the Orlando real estate market, these sales also helped boost the confidence of investors and top Orlando realtors believe Florida can expect more investment in 2014.

Here’s a look at four of the hottest deals in the Central -Florida real estate sector that shone brighter than the others in 2013.

Hyatt Hotels Corp. shells out nearly $600 million to purchase Peabody Orlando

The biggest deal of 2013 was signed on October 1, when the Peabody Exchange LLC bought the Peabody Orlando off UST Hotel Joint Venture Ltd.’s hands for an impressive $591.7 million.

The 1,641-room sporting luxury hotel located on the International Drive changed hands and flags in 2013 from the Memphis, Tennessee owner to one of Chicago’s biggest hotel brands – the Hyatt Hotels Corp. 

Peabody Orlando is especially famous for its Peabody ducks and though the ducks remain, the hotel’s name doesn’t anymore. It was renamed and is now known as the Hyatt Regency Orlando Convention Center.

  DDR Corp. purchases Winter Garden Village for around $200 million

 

The DDR Corp has already carved a niche for itself in property acquisition and July 2013 saw the Ohio-based property investment trust shell out $196 million in favor of Phoenix’s real estate investment firm – the Cole Real Estate Investment agency.

 Winter Garden Village located in Beachwood, at the Flower Groves lifestyle center is generously spread across 1.1 million square feet and this retail development, signature of West Orange County has now been put up for lease.

  Downtown Orlando’s relatively new apartment complex changes hands for close to $60 million

This deal was finalized three days prior to the sale of Winter Garden Village. Mesirow Financial Holdings Inc. purchased the newly constructed SteelHouse Orlando apartment on July 16.

The Chicago-based private equity firm paid $59 million to the developer, Pollack Shores and became the owner of downtown Orlando’s new 326-unit apartment complex, which was only about 60 percent occupied at that time.

Post Properties Inc. becomes the new owner of an apartment complex near Disney World

 

The 300-unit apartment complex, Crosswater, at the Lakeside Village saw a shift of hands-on on May 29 and its eventual renaming to Post Lakeside. Post Properties – a real estate investment trust based in Atlanta paid $48.4 million to developers Boyd Development Corp, and Greenfield Partners LLC, based in Orlando and South Norwalk respectively.

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Orlando Real Estate Market – What can be expected in 2013?

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

The tentative economic conditions will continue to impact the real estate market in Florida and particularly in Orlando even this year. Home prices are expected to rise again due to decreasing inventory facing its lowest phase since February 2006. As per the market research, the 2013 appreciation is expected to increase up to 3%. Some investors even expect the prices to climb up to 4%. If the price range will go so much higher, then it may drastically affect market conditions. The changes in price may emerge around the spring season. So, it’s better for investors to crack the deal before the prices climb.

The interest rates for the Orlando real estate market are expected to remain low. The rate may get low as 3% according to The Federal Reserve. The lower interest rates may neutralize the price hike of houses. This can be encouraging for the recovery of the real estate market.

Not only the home prices, but the mortgage guidelines are also going to face changes. There are reports of rules to become stricter for mortgage refinance. This step is being considered to help borrowers for being more responsible with their mortgage loans. Borrowers may even avoid defaulting on their mortgage by following the new set of rules. According to the new rules, borrowers must have to submit more documents for a mortgage refinance. The financial stability of the borrower will also be scrutinized minutely. The range of the qualifying credit score may be from 580 to 620. Insurance premiums of FHA are also expected to increase.

The diminishing inventory is also a decisive factor for the real estate market in Orlando in 2013. The shrinking inventory may aggravate the competition for quality properties in Orlando. So, the scope of getting multiple offers at a time will increase automatically.

Many market experts explain the Orlando real estate market as a seller’s market. Of course, the rise in home prices proves this claim. These market conditions are more favorable for sellers.

The construction of new homes may also bring huge changes in the real estate market. The degree of change depends largely on future economic alterations. Experienced professionals are expecting the gap between the new home sales and the re-sale to get broadened. Builders may offer lesser incentives to buy properties. This may be a good time to build profitable properties.

As the market condition is suggesting, the investors must take advantage of the beneficial situation before it’s too late. The overall market predictions are favorable till now, but the situations may change if the world economy takes a turn. The same applies to a mortgage refinance too. It’s advisable to decide on refinancing after judging the market.

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Highlighting your property’s best features

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

If you’re getting ready to sell your home, make sure that your Orlando realtor does a good job of showing off the things about your property that make it special. Make sure that you take advantage of mentioning anything that sets your property apart from the rest. Sometimes when someone has lived in a house for soo long they tend to not see all the high points that their property possesses.

You’re probably thinking… “Isn’t that my realtor’s job?” The answer is yes, your Orlando real estate agent should have the ability to go through your home and highlight all the extra features that your house brings to the table that the others in the neighborhood don’t. However, not all Orlando realtors are created equal and in my opinion, the selling of a house is just way too important of a transaction to just turn over to someone and hope for the best without making sure that they are doing all they can do to get top dollar for your property.

List of things that sellers commonly forget to mention when selling their home

Over-sized lots.

Larger than average closets.

Sitting area in the master bedroom.

Extra storage space.

Bonus rooms.

Separate entrances.

Beautiful views from the front or back yard.

Walking distance from shops, restaurants, and schools.

Don’t False advertise

As important as it is to make sure that your property’s best features are highlighted, it’s equally important to verify that your Orlando listing agent isn’t making any false statements. If your home is being portrayed as something more than what it is, this can only hurt you as well as your agent. Imagine yourself as an agent on the way to show a listing to a client based on the listing information you saw online, when you arrive at the house you realize that the photos that you viewed online have either been photoshopped or are of a different house altogether!  Some other examples that I’ve seen are neighborhood descriptions such as “newly developed” when “deteriorating” would have been a better match, “move-in ready” instead of “Fixer-upper”, etc.

I guess the moral of this story is, make sure that you follow up with your Orlando realtor and insist that you be informed on what’s happening. Ask to see the live MLS listing as well as any other marketing being done to sell your property. After all, selling your house is statistically one of the most important, if not the most important transaction in your lifetime.

Want to know how much your Orlando property will sell for: click here for your free property analysis.

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Do younger Orlando Realtors have an edge over “old school” agents?

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

More and more young people are choosing to become full time Orlando real estate agents as a profession.  Historically,  real estate has proven to be a great field to be in no matter what the market is doing.  The ones who are able to keep up with what the Orlando real estate market is doing and make changes to their business model accordingly, are able not only to survive in tough markets, but thrive in any market.

Young agents definitely have an edge in the technology department over the “old school” agents that try to resist technology. Being internet savvy is a huge advantage just because of the time you save. Although our office still maintains a paper file on every client, those files are a fraction of the size they used to be thanks to amazing real estate soft wares that are available today.

I’ve been an Orlando realtor since 2005 and I can tell you that technology, as it applies to real estate has come a long, long way in 7 years. One thing is for sure, agents that apply new techniques such social media marketing, maintaining an up-to-date blog, up-to-date website, SEO [Search Engine Optimization], etc. will be much more successful than the agents that do not. The cruel truth is that technology has completely changed the way realtors do business and you have to keep up with the trend or get left behind.

Being a Realtor is like having your own Business

Another reason why so many young people are flocking to the world of  Orlando real estate is the allure of having their own business. Real estate agents are independent contractors that are responsible for marketing themselves and finding their own clients or they don’t get paid.  It’s a great field for self motivated people because they basically have no boss and the sky’s the limit if they’re willing to put in the work. For young and eager agents this presents an opportunity of a lifetime. People that want to be nestled in an office everyday and do the minimum amount of work just to get by, will eventually find a better fit for themselves pursuing professions other than the ever changing world of Orlando real estate.

Helpful Tip on finding the right agent:

Just by typing in the agent’s name and city they work in,  you can find out anything and everything you need about an agent and what they are all about. A successful realtor will usually be all over the internet for they areas that they specialize in and if they aren’t, then you may want to move on to the next candidate.

 

 

 

 

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Beautiful Orlando Property for Sale in the Meadow Woods subdivision

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Orlando Home in Meadow Woods have the neighbor’s heads turning

From ugly duckling to beautiful swan, this two-story 2,000+ sq ft Orlando property home has been fully renovated from head to toe. One of my investor clients started on this remodel about 3 months ago and finished this week. As soon as you open the front door the property just says “Welcome,  Come on in! “.  The soothing layout is an open floor plan with a very well thought out and functional design including a large downstairs masters retreat with the remaining 3 bedrooms and bonus room on the second floor. Also located on the first floor is a spacious kitchen with a breakfast bar, formal dining room, and large living room with a pond view. This beauty has been 100% renovated using exotic granite countertops throughout, top-quality carpeting and ceramic tile floors, high-end fixtures, and stainless steel appliances.

This immaculate Orlando home is located in the very desirable subdivision of Meadow Woods off of Landstar Rd. which is close to public transportation, shops, restaurants, and attractions. Located on a corner lot, the fenced-in yard is enormous and the property has a pond in the back yard great for fishing and canoeing.

The beautiful landscaping consists of Large Queen palms, Seigo palms, roses, citrus trees, and several other flowering plants that I just don’t know the name of.

No Expense was spared when renovating this Orlando property

The inside of the house was completely remodeled using exotic granite throughout, high-end fixtures and stainless steel appliances, top-of-the-line carpeting, and tile. My client knows that the key to a successful re-hab is to make everything look perfect giving the buyer absolutely nothing to complain about.

By using earth tones and not skimping on kitchen and bathroom cabinets as well as countertops, you are giving yourself the best chance to sell the property quickly. Pricing Orlando real estate correctly is crucial in order to get the property sold quickly, that’s why we do a complete market analysis before listing any of our Orlando homes.

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