Tag: orlando realtor

Florida incomes and Orlando real estate continue to rise

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Floridians income increase along with their confidence

 

Florida has shown substantial gains on three different areas, Real estate prices, income and consumer confidence. Much of this can be attributed to the overall housing market in Florida. Orlando real estate is a great accelerator when it comes to creating jobs and increasing local incomes, then the next logical thing that happens is a confidence boost. It’s just human nature, when people are doing OK financially they not only feel better about themselves but they become more confident about how much they can spend when house hunting.

I think It’s good that Floridian’s consumer confidence is at it’s highest point in 5 years but potential home buyers still need to be careful. The Orlando real estate market is constantly changing and right now it’s on the rise as it has been for the past 2 years or so. This doesn’t mean that you should buy just any house listed on the MLS. The truth is that many Orlando properties that I see listed are seriously overpriced. Sometimes this is due to the seller wanting to sell for the absolute highest price in the neighborhood because sellers typically believe that the house where they live is special compared to other houses in the same neighborhood, again…just human nature.

 

Short Sale Lenders are sometimes to blame for overpriced real estate listings

As short sale realtors, we are sometimes told by the client’s lender how much to list the property for. Sometimes, no matter how many years of experience we have in selling Orlando real estate, they still think they know more about the local market than an experienced Orlando realtor. I’ve argued with negotiators until I’m blue in the face as far as “fair market value” is concerned and they will still try to tell me how much the property should be listed for. However I quickly learn, usually on the first conversation, whether arguing my point will do you any good. Lenders that absolutely insist on telling me how much to list a property for… in my area of expertise,  I do just that.

9 out of 10 times, the result is that the property spends a lot more time on the market than it should have. With no offers or contracts after several weeks or even months of the property being listed, short sale negotiators will eventually figure out that they’re asking price needs to be lowered, then…I do just that and the property gets sold.

 

 

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Orlando Real Estate, one of the Nations Highest in Asking Prices, but we won’t be Fooled Again!

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

 Orlando Real Estate is Hotter than ever right now

As of a year ago in August asking prices are up 8.6% which means that we are actually eighth in the nation, tied with San Jose California. This is good news for Orlando homeowners who elected to ride the storm out since the crash in 2007. These homeowners who have been wanting to sell their Orlando property but didn’t want to take a huge loss are now able to sell and even make a profit depending on how much they owe.

Orlando real estate Experts can speculate all they want to and try and predict what the future of Orlando real estate will be, but the fact is that only time will tell. One thing that I always try to advise my clients about is to be very careful when buying Orlando Real estate, especially as an investment. Sure, buying Orlando realty as an investment can be a great idea if you buy it right and don’t let your emotions cloud you’re thinking.

Homebuyers should never depend on Orlando Real estate appreciating when making their decision to buy. This is where a whole lot of people got into a whole lot f trouble in past years. In 2006 people went into a frenzy buying up houses and condos in new construction properties in Orlando with an “I can’t go wrong attitude” thinking that they were going to make a killing. And the fact is that many investors did make a killing doing just that. But there were many more people that lost everything and have never recovered. I know this because working as Orlando Short Sale specialist, most of my clients are short sale clients. I’ve had clients that have had 20 and 30 properties and they now have  20 and 3o properties in default and upside down.

Orlando home buyers should never forget what happened in 2007

As hot as the Orlando real estate market is today, I really hope that people don’t fall into that trance again where they believe that Orlando home prices will only rise and can never fall, that kind of thinking is what got everyone into trouble in the first place.

If you’re thinking of purchasing a home in Orlando, consult with a proven Orlando Real estate expert so that you can make educated decisions on your approach to the world of Orlando Real estate investing.

Orlando Investment Homes

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The world of Orlando Short Sales may be coming to a screeching halt

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

What will happen to Orlando short sales if the Mortgage debt relief Act of 2007 is not extended?

Short sales have been very popular since the market crashed in 2007,  mainly because sellers have the benefit of not being taxed for the deficiency between the mortgage amount and the actual payoff. What people worry about now is that the  Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007  is about to come to an end at the end of  2012 and so far we haven’t anything about the government extending it.

What do you think would happen if the law doesn’t get extended? In my opinion, this would be the end of Orlando short sales as we know them.

When you think about it, what incentive would a seller have to do an Orlando short sale if they end up with a massive deficiency when it closes?  That’s right… there would be no incentive. In fact, I think that most people will just end up letting it go to foreclosure. This means that Orlando REO realtors would be busier than ever.

Deep down I truly believe that this law will be extended, it just makes good business sense for everyone involved… sellers buyers, and lenders. Orlando real estate is moving right now and a big part of that is because of the short sale inventory.

If you are considering an Orlando short sale on your house, don’t take a chance on the mortgage debt relief act of 2007 being extended. Consult with an Orlando short sale specialist and find out what your options are now or you might regret it.

Jenny Zamora, Lic RE Broker. Orlando Short Sale Specialist

Orlando short sale expert

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Homeowners Insurance Prices discourage people from buying Orlando Real Estate

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Florida Homeowner Insurance companies are having a negative effect on Orlando Real Estate Sales

 

Even though the real estate market in Orlando is recovering in leaps and bounds, homeowners are not happy about the high price of Florida homeowners insurance. As a matter of fact, for some potential home buyers, it’s proven to be the  straw that broke the camel’s back.
 
 There are still great real estate deals in Orlando, but even if the price of  the property is affordable as well as  property taxes, etc., the homeowners insurance in some cases can be almost as much as a mortgage payment. That’s insane!
 
 

Citizens Insurance raising it’s premiums on Florida Homeowners

 The main reason for the high cost of homeowners insurance in Florida is the recent increase that Citizens has made to it’s premiums. Many times this will cause potential real estate deals to fall through or even worse, it puts the new homeowner in a position to fail because he went over budget, and potentially cause him to default on his payments.
 
 The state run Citizens claims that the had no choice but raise the premiums because they are supposed to be a last resort for people and now they are covering many more homes than the program was designed for. That’s not all, if massive hurricane were to hit Florida and deplete all the company’s reserves, all Floridians would get taxed thus hurting the state economy in a big way.
 
 
 Read the fine print when Buying Orlando Realty

When it comes to buying Orlando Real estate, there’s more than just deciding which homeowners insurance company you’re going to commit to. You have to read the fine print and be aware of everything that you’re committing to. So many first time home buyers  end up in hot water because the fail to understand exactly what they’re signing. Then there is another type of buyer, the type that wants to get into that new house so badly even though deep down they know that it’s beyond there budget.

That’s why you need an experienced Orlando realtor to walk you through the complexities of buying a home in Orlando. I personally will not allow a client to make what I know will be a bad decision for them. As Orlando real estate agents, we have an obligation to look out for the best interest of our clients and help them in any way that we can when it comes to buying or selling Orlando real estate.

 
 
Jenny Zamora. Lic. RE Broker

 

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Lenders Forcing Homeowners to purposely default on Orlando Real Estate

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Financial Hardship is not the only reason why Orlando homeowners are not paying their mortgage

Strategic Default is when a homeowner decides to stop paying their mortgage, not necessarily because they can’t afford it, but because it’s a bad investment not worth paying into anymore. Even if the consequence means to possibly lose their house to foreclosure and damage their credit.

Orlando homeowners have been purposely defaulting on their mortgages for several years now. When people become aware of the reality of their situation, they make a conscious decision to stop paying their mortgage. In most cases, I can’t say that I blame them. Don’t get me wrong, I would never tell a client to stop paying on their mortgage. However, I do tell my clients what their house will sell for and about how long it will take to sell and they do the rest of the math on their own.
Although Orlando real estate is making a steady recovery and I believe will continue to do so. There are Orlando homeowners that will never get the money back that they’ve put into their property.

Strategic default  Vs. Moral Obligation

Some Orlando homeowners are worried about their moral obligation to pay the mortgage. The truth is that the homeowner entered into an arms-length transaction with their lender in which both parties had competing interests thus spelling out their obligations in a clear, signed contract. Unless the contract states that the homeowner has a “moral obligation to pay,” then it’s plain and simple – they don’t.
Here are the facts;  when a homeowner borrows the money to buy an Orlando property, they have entered into a business transaction. The lender evaluated the risks and concluded that it was a risk worth taking. For its protection, the lender also required that the homeowner put the property up as collateral, as well as any equity that they had in the house.
The contract spelled out that if the homeowner doesn’t pay, the lender has the right to take the property and sell it before the homeowner gets any equity back – if there were any equity left, which of course in these cases, there isn’t. The lender would not have approved the loan if they didn’t think it was a smart business decision. The homeowners choice to enter into this agreement was also a business decision.
It’s now obvious, that both the homeowner as well as the lender made a bad decision. Now, the contract spells out what happens if the homeowner stops paying, the lender gets the property.

However, there are other options available to homeowners like doing an Orlando short sale or a loan modification. In my opinion, most loan modifications that get approved just don’t make financial sense unless they reduce the principle balance of the loan.

Strategic default is actually something that is caused by the lenders. The fact is, lenders won’t even consider entertaining a short sale unless a homeowner is behind their mortgage thus forcing the homeowner stop paying the mortgage.


By doing a short sale, the homeowner is able to get their house sold and walk away from the responsibilities of the mortgage. Also, there are now several “cash for keys” programs available where lenders offer substantial cash incentives for doing a short sale, sometimes up to $30,000.00 depending on what kind of loan they have and who the lender is.


Your value as a person is not determined by the value of your real estate, or how much money you owe to a bank.  You are worth more as an individual than your bank will ever understand. Life is too short, and there are so many things more important than an underwater mortgage. For many Orlando homeowners, it’s literally the difference between happiness and depression.


If you’re in a situation where you need to do an Orlando short sale on your house go speak with an Orlando short sale expert and find a solution, you owe it to yourself and your family.

 

 

Jenny Zamora, Lic Re Broker/ Orlando Short sale Expert

Orlando short sale expert

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