[INeedAChange]

Will you buy properties once the market hits close to bottom? Or do the problems of property taxes and insurance outweigh the potential gains for you at this point, and you've washed your hands of Florida?
(this question is for investment properties only, not for you to live in)

[AliceT]

Florida is a lot like southern California. Would you invest in LA? Of course you would. Prices are only going to soar and since investing is just another type of gambling, I would take the gamble that Florida home prices are going to bounce back and soar.

[macguy]

Originally Posted by INeedAChange

Will you buy properties once the market hits close to bottom? Or do the problems of property taxes and insurance outweigh the potential gains for you at this point, and you've washed your hands of Florida?
(this question is for investment properties only, not for you to live in)

Of Course, I can show you a zillion places you can buy property and should you want to sell it in the future you will never find a buyer. But in Florida even now if someone wants to sell all they have to do s set the right price and it will sell if it is anywhere someone wants to live. Florida coast line is a limited commodity no matter how you look at it.

[Lindsey_Mcfarren]

I am hoping the prices fall far enough to make property close to the beach cheap enough for me to purchase. A property I could rent out on a weekly basis to people on vacation, people from Europe and the UK will pay $1000 and up per week for properties like this.

Last January I stayed in a home on Sanibel that was $3000 a week at invitation of a friend who had rented them. In December they rented them at a minimum of 2 weeks and she wanted her entire family there for Christmas so we were invited to enjoy the week they were not there.

I would LOVE to have a property like this to rent out and then use myself when I got time off work.

If your looking to invest in property this might be a good way to make more money off them then renting them by the month to regular people. Check out Resort Quest, they rent out homes like this.

[INeedAChange]

Lindsey, is that the same as a "condotel" ?

Originally Posted by Lindsey_Mcfarren

I am hoping the prices fall far enough to make property close to the beach cheap enough for me to purchase. A property I could rent out on a weekly basis to people on vacation, people from Europe and the UK will pay $1000 and up per week for properties like this.

Last January I stayed in a home on Sanibel that was $3000 a week at invitation of a friend who had rented them. In December they rented them at a minimum of 2 weeks and she wanted her entire family there for Christmas so we were invited to enjoy the week they were not there.

I would LOVE to have a property like this to rent out and then use myself when I got time off work.

If your looking to invest in property this might be a good way to make more money off them then renting them by the month to regular people. Check out Resort Quest, they rent out homes like this.

[macguy]

Originally Posted by Lindsey_Mcfarren

I am hoping the prices fall far enough to make property close to the beach cheap enough for me to purchase. A property I could rent out on a weekly basis to people on vacation, people from Europe and the UK will pay $1000 and up per week for properties like this.

Last January I stayed in a home on Sanibel that was $3000 a week at invitation of a friend who had rented them. In December they rented them at a minimum of 2 weeks and she wanted her entire family there for Christmas so we were invited to enjoy the week they were not there.

I would LOVE to have a property like this to rent out and then use myself when I got time off work.

If your looking to invest in property this might be a good way to make more money off them then renting them by the month to regular people. Check out Resort Quest, they rent out homes like this.

Not as easy as it sounds. My sister in law has a house like that she rents out sometimes. She is lucky to have it rented 10 or 15 weeks out of the year. Mean time there is no homesteading so the tax is high. About $17,000 a year. Plus a $3500 a month mortgage and other expenses. It's a money pit especially now.

[CJFlorida]

If the days ever return where you can purchase a property for 100 times rental and produce a positive cash flow, than you can invest again.

An investment can only be called an investment if it produces positive cash flow. Primary residences are not investments at all. Neither are properties where the owner lives in it more than 14 days per year and rents it out part time.

But prices are not even remotely close to where it makes sense to buy rental property.

[GregTraub]

Some communities have already dropped to a level where you can cashflow. I know of one townhome community that fetches from 1300-1395/mo and asking prices are now in the 180's. With 20%, if an investor can get a rate of anything lower than 7%, including a conservative tax, HOA fee's (that include insurance, reserves, and exterior maintenance), vacancy rates in the area are less than 5% (very good rental area), costs would equal exactly $1395 or less depending on rate, not exactly cashflowing yet, but I was also calculating on a fully amortizing 30 yr loan.

We're getting close in some areas.

[daveyjones]

I just aquired 3 bank repossessed homes in Orange and Brevard counties.
The banks are practically giving these away so im grabbing those.
I'm thinking late 2008 and 2009 and 2010 before I sell for (I hope ) a BIG profit.

[Lindsey_Mcfarren]

Originally Posted by macguy

Not as easy as it sounds. My sister in law has a house like that she rents out sometimes. She is lucky to have it rented 10 or 15 weeks out of the year. Mean time there is no homesteading so the tax is high. About $17,000 a year. Plus a $3500 a month mortgage and other expenses. It's a money pit especially now.

Where is this house? I'm sure there are areas that are easier to do this in then others and of course that is some research I will have to do. I have also heard that in some areas they can rent it to snow birds for several months at a time, especially over in the Fort Myers area.