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You could rent or buy or live in the street – it’s up to you. I might wait… unless I needed a roof over my and my families head.
In that case I would not be waiting for the Big One as it may never happen. Odds are that this cycle is near over and while you wait you lose prime choices in the market to those who are buying.
And yes even if the prices don’t go up - which I don’t see on a near horizon (6 months) inventory is definitely leveling off if not going down.
Play Russian roulette if you want or be a pseudo economist and maybe you’ll get lucky. But is it about luck – especially when you have a family depending on your decision.
Florida house prices are not good as they are. In my opinion you arent missing anything as you can get so much better deal in Texas, Georgia, North Carolina or many other states. I have been thru several hurricanes so let me warn you hurricanes are a reality if you stay in Florida.
You're a lot better off moving to a more affordable area, especially one with fewer zoning restrictions, so you can have the freedom to innovate and build your business from home. When you become more successful then you can move to the location of your choice. Otherwise you can stay in Florida and struggle while living in an apartment overflowing with roommates or living with your parents. I feel that the south Florida lifestyle actually kills ambition and most natives never progress to the American dream. Just move and give yourself space to grow!
Hello all,
This is my first post here......this thread intrigued me. You see, I am still on cloud nine from just buying a house just outside of Leesburg, in a place called "The Plantation".
I'm a Professional Firefighter/medic from NY that plans on retiring in the next 5 years.
I dislike the winters, flat economy, and high taxes of New York State. We visited Lake county and really liked it. Buying now at a reduced price, just before the snowbirds scooped it up from me made sense. It was one of the nicest houses in the nicest location in the community, and there was other buyer interest.
I have a good top notch management agency who will handle a lot of it, and I can go down there a few times a year to "check out" the place and have it be a tax deduction. If I wait 5 years to buy, I may not be able to afford it.
I do not disagree with you all, although you do sound quite negitive. When we were down there, I visited Tampa, Ft. Myers, etc and it seems to me that Florida is a big state, and it is worse some places then others. I checked the real estate values in Leesburg, and they have dropped the last two months, but have gone up 135% in the past 5 years.
The baby boomer generation is just beginning to think where they will retire, and I'm sure that Florida will get their share of those, making demand go back up down the road. I am far from an expert, but I wonder if because of those prices risins so much the past 5 years, people went nuts with spec building, and this is now a correction. Bottom line, I'm betting that the Florida economy will be much better then the Buffalo area economy i've endured for the past 48 years.
My friend in Ft Myers is crying about the glut of homes and falling prices, but what I saw in lake county, it looked alot better.
well, I just wanted to join you guys.
thanks, Frank D.
Frank,
Your decision to buy when and where you did could turn out to be your shrewdest decision ever, or your absolute worst. Five years ago, buying your retirement home in Florida would have been a no-brainer... there would have been virtually no risks at all. Buying today, you are faced with the hurricane threats (global warming??), unusually long humidity season, high property taxes for nonresident/new buyers, unheard of homeowner insurance rates, unlimited and unrestricted building, etc.. The costs of homeownership in Florida is much more than the mortgage that you will pay. Waiting five years to move into your retirement dream could turn into a money pit, despite the expected tax deductions. On the plus side, you will see more sunshine than you could ever dream.
I have followed this forum continually the past year, and have found that most reliable posters are those who are actually Florida residents living there for most of their lives. There is a large contingent of posters who tell it honestly and have guided me thorough my decisions... the Florida grass is not always greener. I am a landlord and a soon to be retired teacher from Pa... I will have a decent pension and my properties have a very positive cash flow. I have been willing to take gambles in a Pittsburgh (after the steel mills left) marketplace and have been very successful, but the "juice" to pay to purchase Florida property this year is a little too rich for my blood. Good luck with your decision to buy now!
that's on sale, in the right size, color, fit etc. and we wait. When we go back, it's gone. Sure there will be plenty of houses for sale but if you see that one that you love so much, don't wait 'cause chances are someone else likes it as much. Go get it before someone else does.
that's on sale, in the right size, color, fit etc. and we wait. When we go back, it's gone. Sure there will be plenty of houses for sale but if you see that one that you love so much, don't wait 'cause chances are someone else likes it as much. Go get it before someone else does.
I don't know about that. In the Florida housing market there is little you can't do without. Except for price, you don't want to miss out on a fantastic deal, houses are rarely unique. They are like a bus, miss one and the next one comes along. They are all cookie cutter with very little to fall in love with.
Firemed, you're funny. Bet you won't get any "bailing out".
Sunny, the CNN story did touch on those loans a bit. They said that the interest rates will reset now and there will be many foreclosed homes. It will be devastating for a lot of people when they have to start making payments with a higher interest rate plus payments on the principle.
If someone has an ARM (Adjustable rate mortgage) that was fixed for 2 or 3 years and now about to adjust, they SHOULD refinance to a fixed rate. Those figures of 12 Million ARMs about to recast and all those will face foreclosures are ONLY IF those that have ARM mortgages just pay and not refinance and they just blew the equity.
Refinancing your home is a very smart financial move IF you work with a good broker and/or a financial planner, but it is to conserver, not consume. You refinance your home to get out the equity to SAVE it and earn interest in high yield LIQUID accounts so that if the market does change for the worst you have a safe out, but yet you have earned money on your equity.
This is just a synopsis of how it works, not a full detail. Talk to your banker to find out more info. But those who understand how money and equity work, do refinance their home every 5 to 7 years.
Look at it this way, do you put your money in the bank or hide it under the loose board in your closet? If you have money you are not going to spend for a while do you keep it in a coffee can or a savings account? Equity is the same thing. No, you don't get 300k of equity out and blow it on fancy cars that depreciate and show off to your friends with it. But those who want their house to work for them as an asset, refinance every once in a while to invest it safety and wisely but always have a safety net plan for when and if the market changes so drastically as it has in FL.
So, my point...you can't blame the mortgages and government just because you think you found a gold mine when your house value when up and you got suckered into a mortgage that you didn't understand and just signed the papers, it IS a mortgage which does have to be paid back.
And I am being general here when I say "you" meaning anyone, was just easier to write that way.
I don't know about that. In the Florida housing market there is little you can't do without. Except for price, you don't want to miss out on a fantastic deal, houses are rarely unique. They are like a bus, miss one and the next one comes along. They are all cookie cutter with very little to fall in love with.
Wall Street and the New York Times. “Housing bulls took heart on Dec. 27, when the Commerce Department reported that sales of new one-family homes rose 3.4 percent in November from October. But those who think that the worst may be over for the housing market should take another look at the data, economists say.”
“On its Web site, the Census Bureau acknowledges: ‘As a result of our methodology, if conditions are worsening in the marketplace and cancellations are high, sales would be temporarily overestimated.’”
“By how much? Economist Joseph Carson estimates that the government is overestimating the pace of annual sales by 100,000 to 150,000. Economist Mark Zandi estimates that the differential is even greater. ‘Given the rise in cancellation rates, it suggests that between 150,000 and 200,000 home sales are being counted that actually did not occur.’”
“Just as the rising tide of cancellations leads the Census Bureau to overreport sales in the short term, it leads the government to underreport inventories.”
Hello all,
This is my first post here......this thread intrigued me. You see, I am still on cloud nine from just buying a house just outside of Leesburg, in a place called "The Plantation".
I'm a Professional Firefighter/medic from NY that plans on retiring in the next 5 years.
I dislike the winters, flat economy, and high taxes of New York State. We visited Lake county and really liked it. Buying now at a reduced price, just before the snowbirds scooped it up from me made sense. It was one of the nicest houses in the nicest location in the community, and there was other buyer interest.
I have a good top notch management agency who will handle a lot of it, and I can go down there a few times a year to "check out" the place and have it be a tax deduction. If I wait 5 years to buy, I may not be able to afford it.
I do not disagree with you all, although you do sound quite negitive. When we were down there, I visited Tampa, Ft. Myers, etc and it seems to me that Florida is a big state, and it is worse some places then others. I checked the real estate values in Leesburg, and they have dropped the last two months, but have gone up 135% in the past 5 years.
The baby boomer generation is just beginning to think where they will retire, and I'm sure that Florida will get their share of those, making demand go back up down the road. I am far from an expert, but I wonder if because of those prices risins so much the past 5 years, people went nuts with spec building, and this is now a correction. Bottom line, I'm betting that the Florida economy will be much better then the Buffalo area economy i've endured for the past 48 years.
My friend in Ft Myers is crying about the glut of homes and falling prices, but what I saw in lake county, it looked alot better.
well, I just wanted to join you guys.
thanks, Frank D.
To Frank D. Your post is refreshing after all the negativism. Yes, it's true the Fla. market is in a severe downturn. But, unless someone was a 'flipper" or had a family emergency where you HAVE to sell your house, then it shouldnt be too bad a thing. I bought (had built) a house in Ocala, in a gated community,( On Top of The World), just a little further north than where you bought yours, this last year. Nothing fancy, in fact a 2/2/2 modest house. But I bought for same reason as you.: I am about 4 years away from retirement & I knew if I didn't buy it then, I would never be abe to afford one in four years from now. Yes the market has corrected, but it will eventully go up again & I think within a couple years. I live in upstate NY but fortunatly, I am able to "buy" vacation from my employer so I am able to visit my house 8-9 times a year. My homeowners ins. is very reasonable as Ocals is considered a non-hurricane are by the ins. co's. (yes, its possible to get hit but percentage is so low that the rates reflect this.). I make a VERY modest salary, I'm not one of those rich New Yorkers everyone talks about & I did not have a 300-500k house to sell in NYS to finance me like some do. I LOVE Ocala & I love Florida. Every state has it's problems as well as Fla. The point is-if anyone is considring moving to Fla., then do it like you & I did. If you wait a year or so you may get even a better deal, but don't delay too long & don't let the negative people talk you out of it.
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A differing path
Frank,
Then again it's like the suit...
Bet you won't get any "bailing out".
