[Nirvana-Guy]

Originally Posted by jbravo

I close next Wed (04 04 07) on the sale of my house. (fingers crossed) I'll have a lot to say after that.

Cross your fingers and toes too. The market does not look good and I hope you manage to get out soon.

But again, you have to look at the issues affecting the market.

[Pixie Dust]

Originally Posted by TriMT7

My house was put on the market January 20.... just got an offer 5k below asking that I accepted yesterday.... the contract is now "pending" for finance, WDO reports ..... I too am crossing my fingers that everything pans out with this buyer getting approved for financing, etc. during thie period and hope to close April 30th!

If everything goes as planned, it took 2 months and 7 days and a helluva lot of hardwork and aggravation and sleepless nights to sell, but it sold. (Again, knock on wood!)

I plan on writing about the experience as well when the sale is finalized!!!!

Keep your fingers crossed. I had one buyer get approved for the sale of my home and pulled out say before closing. After that I have had two buyers with contracts not get approved with the financing. I pary that this will not be your case in hand. If you signed a "as is" contract they should have a commitment letter for you max. 5 days. Stay on top of that. Good luck!!!

[Nirvana-Guy]

Oh and even if you get a low-ball offer on the house, you might want to take it, as the Orlando Sentinel had a report last week that like 30% - 41% of all Central Florida mortgages will go belly-up (due to the adjustable rate issue - most people's payments will jump up around $1,000 more a month sometime in the next 6 months). Foreclosures will be more of the norm, rather than the excption.

So everything indicates the housing market will keep worsening. Get out while you can.

[rickle]

Originally Posted by designer1

I just feel everyone is in a doom and gloom attitude. If you read the sunday newspaper there is a list of homes sold each and every week. If there were not any homes sold...that would be of great concern! If you drive around, yes there are a lot of homes on the market.....we have three currently. There is so much inventory that the buyer can be picky. The seller needs to stage there home to get the competitive edge. There are several staging companies in the yellow pages under home staging. The sellers in the 600-millions price range are not under stress. People that can afford that type of home are not affected by the economy as much. Now the 250k price range homes that have dropped half there value, and they look exactly like the other 1500 on the market with the same type of lot could be of some concern. In that situation the home must stand out, and show well, or it dosent have a chance until some of the inventory goes away. 2010 baby boomers retireng to florida will be the next housing shortage. Designer1

The reality is that you can still sell a house. It depends on how much you need to get for it. If you bought in 2004 you probably won't make a profit. Prices are down to where they were prior to the 04 rush.
The three things that sell a house are:
Price -
Availabilty -
Wage - (what you pay the realtor)
Every house is sellable!!
PM me if you want more info

[Angelrocks]

Originally Posted by Nirvana-Guy

Oh and even if you get a low-ball offer on the house, you might want to take it, as the Orlando Sentinel had a report last week that like 30% - 41% of all Central Florida mortgages will go belly-up (due to the adjustable rate issue - most people's payments will jump up around $1,000 more a month sometime in the next 6 months). Foreclosures will be more of the norm, rather than the excption.

So everything indicates the housing market will keep worsening. Get out while you can.

Whoa! Payments will jump up around $1,000 more a month.

Now why is this? I never heard of anything like this when I first purchased a home. When the mortgage broker sat down with me, believe it or not, he was honest and told me exactly what could happen. Worst case scenario it could have went up an extra $400 - which it never did. I think the most it ever did was go up $150 one year. Other than that, it's been very low.

I would love to find out why these newer loans are more dangerous. I never heard of anything like this in my life. I have a hard time imagining an honest broker sitting down with somebody telling them the truth! Not if payments will go up $1,000 or more a month. A person needs to get a fixed loan, and put down 20%. If they can't put down 20%, I feel they're not ready to purchase. There is a good reason why.

I personally think the housing market experiences up and down periods. Right now is a great time to buy, I wouldn't want to sell. However, I feel that things will change, as it always does. Broward and Dade counties have a land shortaqe. Eventually, single family homes will continue to go up. However, I am not sure about townhomes and condo's. That may be some time before we see any real appreciation, especially on condo's. That is an oversaturated market right now.

[designer1]

Originally Posted by carolac

Please forgive my ignorance. I've not heard of this before. Would you let me know what it is? Thanks in advance.

<<<The seller needs to stage there home to get the competitive edge. There are several staging companies in the yellow pages under home staging. . . .>>>

Staging is looking at the home from a buyers eye. A professional stager knows what works, and what doesn't. They will edit your furniture and furnish a vacant property. Rearrange furniture and accessories, de-clutter. make suggestions on painting and curb appeal. For every dollar spent with staging, you usually get four or more back. There is a staging co in the cape coral city guide. Staging is really big, and has been for years in california.

[HockeyMom72]

We were thinking about buying, but I have mixed feelings on this. My husband bought a small condo two years ago just as prices were starting to rise. He wants to sell it and get something bigger when I come down. However, given the state of the market, I am worried that he will not even be able to get what he paid for it, let alone make a profit. I told him at the time he purchased it, I thought he should just rent for a few years. His salary could have definitely paid for a rental.

We sold our home on LI almost 3 years ago. I held on to half of the money from that, so we could afford a bigger condo with the sale of his at the selling price. It can be rented, BUT the association has imposed a 6 month rental for tenants. Who wants to have to keep finding a tenant every 6 months?

My personal feeling is to just wait it out. Stay in the condo and just make some minor adjustments. The real estate market is just too unstable right now. It's not just Florida. It's all over.

[suzycue]

What is the fee for realtors running right now? Is it a set fee or does it vary, specifically for the Miami area. I am going to be put my home for Sale in the West Kendall area, not sure when, but I will give myself at least 6 months until I sell. I am still not sure how I am going to handle this, I need to do some more research before I put my home in hands of a realtor....I was thinking of maybe using "buy owner", but the way things are right now, I am afraid to or not sure. Any suggestions or experiences in selling Townhomes (3 bed/2.5 bath) in the West Kendall area (around 154 Ave and Kendall)

[tallrick]

Just do what you can to fix the property tax situation in Florida. Fix that and we'll have a temporary real estate boom! You'll have plenty of time to bail out with a tidy sum then!

[firemed]

The outlook is not good right now. This will not be a quick fix. Florida is over built and it will take time to fix this mess.http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv...1?pageNumber=1