Tag: Top Orlando Realtors

Orlando Home Values Are In The Eye Of The Beholder

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Real Estate Is Not An Exact Science…Not Even Close! 

The truth is that there are many variables involved and I’m not just talking about physical variables like granite countertops and travertine floors. I’m talking about other aspects like the motivations and the desires of both sellers and buyers. It can be very difficult to account for more value or less value when you bring the human element into the mix. Sure, it’s easy to pull up data for value trends in a certain area, but you have to blend that data with variables that are present in each situation.

Working as a Realtor in Orlando since 2004, I realized long ago that real estate is about people and every person is different with different needs and different motivations. Orlando home values can differ drastically depending on who you’re talking to.

These days most home buyers know exactly what they want. What may be considered valuable to one person may be viewed as a negative to another. Does the home provide a specific need for the new buyer? A perfect example of this can be a home with a pool. Living in Orlando especially, I personally place tremendous value on having a pool in the backyard so that my family and I can cool off on those hot summer days.

However, there are people who prefer to not have a pool. Having a pool for them could represent having more things to maintain and more expensive or maybe they have small children who can’t swim. To these people, having a pool is a huge negative and they may not want to even consider looking at a home with a pool.

Other examples that can influence buyers with a specific need may include having an in-law suite, one-story or two-story floor plans, a master on the main floor, a handicapped-friendly floor plan, etc. Some may place the quality of the construction and the home’s design at the top of the list.

Elements outside of the home itself like living in a specific school district, being close to public transportation, or having a pond view can also increase or decrease the appeal of a home depending on what the homeowner is looking for.

People will always be willing to pay more for what they perceive to be valuable to them in their lifestyle. A Home’s Value has to be measured in two different ways: On paper – what the data says and, how well it will serve the buyer and their needs.

Appraisal Value Is The Only Thing That Matters To Lenders

I’ve seen single-family homes in Orlando with bowling alleys, batting cages, and even basketball courts…indoors! However, while a house may contain all these luxurious features, the problem is that these items are considered to be over improvements and just don’t add any “dollars and cents” value to the home.

Although a buyer or a seller may place more value on a home for personal preferences, the lenders are only interested in the appraised value. Attempting to challenge an appraisal in these situations is close to impossible. Underwriters typically do not like to think outside of the box.

 

 

Let's Keep In Touch!

New ORC Form Lead

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
TOC*

Value of Orlando Homes Predicted to Increase by 7.3% in 2015

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Orlando Homes On The Upswing

It is an excellent time for homeowners in the Orlando area. The value of homes in the Orlando metropolitan area is predicted to increase by 7.3 percent in 2015. According to the Real Estate Market Report published by Zillow, this rise easily beats the national prediction of 2.9 percent.

Other predictions

Other than the predicted increase in home values, there are a number of other predictions about the Orlando real estate residential market embedded in the report:

* The average Orlando real estate home value will increase by 15 percent every year. The value has increased to about $161,300. In the other facet, values also decreased in short term and dipped by 1.1 percent in the period between April and May. According to Orlando realtors, home values in the Orlando metropolitan area are now back to the levels witnessed from 2004 to 2007.
* The average rental value increased by 4.4 percent every year to reach $1,296.
* The inventory of total listed for sale residences increased 36.5 percent every year and increased by 4.4 percent every month in May.

When considered all over the United States, the listed for-sale home inventory increased in May and jumped 11.8 percent. Another fact that should be considered here is that a majority of these gains were achieved among residences that are priced in top one-third and middle home values. According to Orlando Realtors, the sale of homes in affordable Orlando real estate – the kind of property favored by people who are buying their homes for the first time – decreased every year in 28 of the country’s biggest metro jurisdictions. These findings came up when the numbers were crunched by Zillow.

Rents

All over the US, rents fell a little in May compared to April. It was a reduction of 0.1 percent and the median rent was calculated as $1,310. National rents (year on year basis) increased to 2.3 percent in the previous month (May).

In May, value of homes all over the US increased by 0.1 percent as compared to April and touched $172,300. This marked its consecutive rise in 28 months when considered year over year. In May, the value of homes increased in Orlando by 5.4 percent. This yearly appreciation in values is the slowest when considered for more than one year. Average rate of interest paid by purchasers decreased to touch 4.39 percent in April.

 

Let's Keep In Touch!

New ORC Form Lead

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
TOC*

Ravaudage Residential Project Stops

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

The construction of the mixed-use Ravaudage project at US Highway 17-92 and Lee Road in Winter Park has stopped. It is being said that the 73-acre development was halted partly, as its property-tax agreement was not accepted by the city. The agreement, as the Orlando real estate developer Dan Bellows says, would finance the public road and utility improvements.

Requests denied

Bellows had publicly said that the project will, in all probability, not be completed without the approvals. Orlando city has consented to the request made by Bellows where he had asked for a distinct district of property tax that will be separate from the tax agreement he was not granted. According to Jeff Briggs, the Planning Manager of Winter Park, the city has given the proposal for reimbursing Bellows a $6 million amount as development fees concerned with the project.

In the meantime, Bellows said that he is considering choices to de-annex the Ravaudage. If this is done, approvals for the project would have to be given by Orange County and not Winter Park. The latter annexed the area in 2012.

Uncertainty over project

According to Bellows, he requires the government to support the project as a partner. Bellows is an old hand in such unique projects. He has redeveloped a number of properties at Hannibal Square located to the west of Winter Park. The city subsequently upgraded the area’s sewer service and roads in the area. Bellows is an Orlando real estate veteran and has decades of experience under his belt.

Ravaudage has slipped in taking advantage of getting a stadium for the baseball team of Rollins College. A Whole Foods Market has also bypassed the project. Both the projects are situated in other parts of Winter Park. Unicorp National Developments Inc. and David Weekly Homes have landed contracts to construct at Ravaudage, but in the opinion of Bellows, both contracts are most likely to expire.

In construction news, Terry’s Electric Inc is managing about $10 million value of work in Publix distribution in Orlando. The company has landed a contract with the Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. The project covers about one million square feet of area. It is scheduled to be completed this autumn. Terry’s has also finished approximately $15 million value of work at the Universal Orlando Resort under contract with the Balfour Beatty Construction.

Looking to Buy A Home in Orlando, FL?

buy real estate in Orlando

 

Let's Keep In Touch!

New ORC Form Lead

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
TOC*

Average Home Price in Orlando Rises to $165K

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

The average price of houses in Orlando rose in May, making it the fourth successive month to touch $165,000. According to Orlando realtors, this has been a peak period since 2008.

According to reports published by Orlando Regional Realtors Association, prices inched up about 1.5 percent in April and about 13.7 percent in May compared to the rates of last year. The report of the association mainly reflects the sales which occurred in Seminole and Orange counties.

The previous time prices of homes were this high, was in December 2008. At that time the prices were $167,500 – a sharp dip from a high of $264,436 achieved in July 2007.

The statistics

Members of the Orlando Regional Realtors Association closed approximately 2,651 sales in the month of May. Sales were down approximately 1 percent in the period starting from April, standing at approximately 11 percent. The available inventory rose from about 3.9 months during April to about 4.1 months during May. This is quite below the six-month level but is adjudged normally.

Probable causes

Zola Szerences, the Association Chairman, said that sales decline can be partly attributed to investor decline. The investors went away from Orlando real estate market as the prices increased. While foreclosures add sorely required inventory injections, they are responsible for slowing the sales. Like Orlando’s short sales, transactions due to foreclosures take more time to process compared to standard transactions.

After many years of shrinking proportions, foreclosures rose about 15 percent in May this year compared to the same period of 2013. Normal sale of homes lowered a little but still comprised approximately two-thirds of total sales. Orlando short sales went down by 62 percent in the period between May 2013 and May 2014. The highest decrease was recorded in the sales of Orlando’s condo market, which fell by 24 percent from last year.

Immediate future

According to Moe Musleem of Re/MAX Legacy, the reason for such an occurrence is that a number of foreclosures are now appearing in the market as the loans are being acquired by a number of loan servicers. He added that the construction of residences has quenched a little of the demand, but not their prices. Musleem is hopeful that a greater number of foreclosures will appear in the market. Since a lot of construction projects are coming up in Seminole and Orange, a large number of properties will sit out in the market.

 

 

Let's Keep In Touch!

New ORC Form Lead

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
TOC*

Sale of 203 Condo Units In Orlando

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

A Madison Capital Management affiliate has been advised by Cushman & Wakefield in the context of the sale of 203 condominium units within 272 Heritage Estates, a Class A community in Orlando. The firm has also garnered about $15.7 million in debt and has organized equity financing by a joint venture from Centersquare Investment Management. Center square is BNY Mellon’s investment boutique for real estate deals. This was done on behalf of the buyer. Five-year financing was provided by Key Bank.

Fractured nature is not a concern

According to Dave Karson, the Executive Managing Director of Cushman & Wakefield, this kind of excellently located community attracts capital from those who seek comparatively lower returns than they were accustomed to for the past several years. The condominium’s fractured nature does not have an effect in such circumstances. He added that the improvement of the equity and debt markets has made such kind of capitalization possible.

Karson’s team members included Chris Moyer, Suraj Ravi, Sridha Vankayala, and Steve Kohn in the Debt & Structured Finance group of Cushman &Wakefield.

Heritage Estates was constructed in 2003 and is sandwiched between Orlando International Airport and the University of Central Florida. It is situated in the University of Central Florida/East Orange submarket. The property has been invested by Madison as either direct owner or lender since 2005. The company has established a stellar record of first acquiring units and then converting those to rentals.

In real estate, relationships are the key

The business of real estate depends on relationships. It is about service as well as trust. Clients do not trust entities that they do not know. For any real estate buyer, it is not simply about searching and then getting home. It is actually the first step in a methodical process from starting the contract to closing the contract. A large number of steps take place after a home is found, and the function of a good Orlando real estate agent becomes apparent at that stage. The task of meeting appraisers, ensuring that the inspector arrives as scheduled, does an adequate job, and sends his or her reports on time.

A realtor juggles communications between the title company, contractors, and sellers and keeps things on schedule as previously planned. Agents have to anticipate and have the requisite knowledge and skill to adjust to situations that even a frequent buyer of homes may have not endured through.

Let's Keep In Touch!

New ORC Form Lead

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
TOC*