Bella Casa Archives - Fort Myers Real Estate and Homes For Sale

Today we have some good news to report on how the domino effect will help real estate market here in SW Florida and nationwide.

For years Realtors have complained that financing was not as easy to obtain for condominiums as it is for single family homes. For various reasons FHA would not lend in most condo projects unless the association jumped through exhaustive and costly hoops. I’m sure FHA had good intentions and wants to protect consumers and the government, but the hoops were so burdensome and arduous that condos could only be financed by FNMA or Freddie Mac secured loans.

While FNMA has 3-5% down loans, many buyers prefer using FHA financing and were forced to buy single family homes under this program. This all changed now that H.R. 3700 was signed into law this past week. More than 140,000 Realtors lobbied Congress in support of this bill and it passed the House and Senate with Unanimous votes. Imagine getting anything done in Congress with unanimous votes!

Many argue that first time home buyers do well in condominiums because the budgeting for repairs, lawn, maintenance, roofs, etc are often times built-into the condo association fee. Homeowners are sometimes surprised by unexpected expenses that come with owning your own home. So this new law will really help spur first time home buyers to buy condos that are often times more affordable than single family homes.

Domino Effect Will Help Real Estate Market

What this legislation does is create a domino effect which could really help the real estate market. By opening up the condo market to more buyers you free up those current condo owners to sell and buy other things. And prices could go up as there will be more demand for condos going forward.

Getting more people into home ownership has its advantages, and financing is always key to providing a healthy real estate market and economy. What really hurt the real estate market and overall economy back in 2006-2011 was banks over-tightening lending practices.

Changes needed to be made because loans like the “Liar Loans” and no documentation loans that President Clinton initiated to open up financing to minorities created a monster and the real estate crisis. What started with good intentions led to everyone getting free money with no documentation and we all know what followed years later.

Now we have Dodd-Frank which is equally disastrous and overly regulatory and caused many homeowners to not be able to live the American dream. So wins like H.R. 3700 becoming law loom large and are good for the real estate market and economy.

If it were me I’d repeal Dodd-Frank but you can’t just undo that without having a plan in place. I’d also undo Obama Care, but again you can’t just undo something without having a better plan to go into place. Since I’m a nobody my ideas don’t matter. And some would argue they like Obama Care.

Where there seems to be unanimous agreement is in this bill, and to that end we’re all grateful. FHA’s owner-occupancy requirement has been cut from 50% to 35% and transfer fees will be more tolerated under this new law. These two new rules alone will open up more condos for financing, and the hoops they must jump through will be lessened.

If you’d like to search for condos in SW Florida, you can do so at www.LeeCountyOnline.com Or you can call us at 239-489-4042 and our team can help you decide whether a home or condo may be the best choice for you.

Good luck and Happy House Hunting!

We have 2 units for sale in Bella Casa in Fort Myers. Passing of this legislation could help home values in Bella Casa and other condominium projects across SW Florida.

Find out what your SW Florida home is worth online. If you’d like a more detailed analysis, please call us and we can help.

Great Britain’s vote to leave the European Union, also known as Brexit, shook financial markets to the core leaving investors scrambling. There was a definite flight to quality into US Treasuries as the 10 Yr note yield fell instantly as the vote was announced. We answer the question, “Could Brexit benefit Southwest Florida home buyers?”

Could Brexit Benefit Southwest Florida Home Buyers?

The answer is yes, it is already benefiting many borrowers. Since Brexit rates are down about 1/4% to ½%. This works out to about 6% more purchasing power for the same payment in one week’s time. In other words, a buyer has two choices. They can either step up about 6% in purchase price and not have the payment cost them any more, or they can purchase the same amount and spend less per month doing it.

This helps more buyers qualify, so it can help sellers too. We have a listing in Bella Casa that has Open House Friday 5:30-7:30 and Saturday 5:30-7:30 July 8th and 9th. It is 3 bedrooms and 2 baths and is listed at $185,000. Before Brexit we needed a buyer that qualified for the full $185,000. Today we could find a buyer that qualified for a maximum $174,000 just last week and make that deal happen and it wouldn’t cost the buyer any more.

In the higher price ranges it’s even more dramatic. Essentially borrowers just got either a financing discount or a purchasing boost for the same money. The buyer definitely wins, and one could argue sellers do too because now there are more available buyers for their home.

When times are uncertain investors flock to tangible assets or quality. Good examples of tangible assets are gold and real estate. Both can fluctuate in value but real estate can be rented out. It’s hard to do that with gold. The EU may not be done losing participants either, and if anyone else bows out like Great Britain did it could spell more uncertainty for the markets.

Gold rose and oil fell after Brexit. Gold was considered a flight to quality while oil fell because people feared a business slowdown. Sometimes the markets are fueled by consumer confidence while other times they’re fueled by opportunities.

We could have fewer British and European buyers in the US market which could hurt some local markets while at the same time helping many buyers. Many times there are competing forces at work and so it is difficult for anyone to accurately predict which force wins out and who the winners and losers will actually be. Just keep in mind there are opportunities in situations like these and the news isn’t always grim.

If you’re thinking about buying in this very low interest rate market we’ve got the website for you. www.LeeCountyOnline.com We think you’ll like it because it is updated with all the listings every 5 minutes. Most of the other sites take days and still don’t always get it right.

Sometimes days is too long. The best properties go fast. Timing is critical. If you’d like to take advantage of this financial situation, give us a call at 239-489-4042 or register on our site. We can get you in touch with a lender who has rates below 3% as of the time we’re writing this article.

If you’re a seller, we have lots of buyers and may have a buyer that’s looking for a home like yours. You can call us too. If we don’t currently have a buyer, we have marketing that attracts buyers. Give us a call and let’s see if we can get you to your next goal.

Good luck and Happy House Hunting!

Next weekend we’ll feature an Open House Extravaganza, so stay tuned.

Welcome to the Ellis Team Seller’s Club. Each month we inform sellers in Southwest Florida trends and data to make the best decisions. E-Mail us if you’d like to be included in our Seller’s Club.

Back in April we reported sales seemed to be picking up just a bit after a lackluster season. We’re happy to report some encouraging news with SW Florida real estate sales picking up slightly.

The trend we saw in April bears out in the statistics. Month’s supply of inventory in all but one price range declined which means there are more sales relative to the amount of inventory on the market. We’ve supplied a chart comparing month’s supply of inventory for single family homes in Lee County Florida in June compared to April 2016. While there is still a large amount of inventory priced $400,000 and up, numbers are looking better.

SW Florida Real Estate Sales Picking Up

We reported that sales were down about 20% earlier this year; however closed sales in May were just about even with last year’s numbers. While February and March sales were down from last year, May is showing some progress this year.

Brexit is in the news and the jury is still out on its effects on our national and local markets. One boon could be lower rates as we see a global flight to quality to US treasuries. When this happens it drives down mortgage rates which are largely based off the 10 yr note. Lower rates would add buying power to local buyers and create newly qualified buyers into the market. The downside could be a lack of consumer confidence and exports which could cost jobs, so we’ll have to wait and see how this all plays out.

Every circumstance presents a new opportunity, so we’ll be looking for creative ways to market to the opportunities as they present.

New listings are up 10.6% in May, so hopefully the pending sales keep coming and keep that supply of inventory down. Pending inventory fell 12% in May over last year while inventory increased 14.1% in May over last year, so we’ll have to keep our eye on that.

There are so many statistics we research each month that give us a guide to where the market may be headed. It’s worked well in the past and sellers appreciate reviewing all the data when they’re making selling decisions on their home.

This is one of the reasons we’ve decided to start up a Seller’s Club. The Ellis Team Seller’s Club is a group of people who have their home on the market or are considering selling their property and are thirsty for market data. We produce a video going over many charts and analyzing the data. We only have so much room in each of these articles so with the videos we’re able to present much more. All of the data is geared to sellers and what they need to know. If you’re listed with another broker this is not a solicitation to obtain your listing.

If you’re considering putting your home on the market then you definitely want to tune in. Just email me at Brett@topagent.com and ask to be placed in our Seller’s Club and we’ll add you. It’s that simple, and you’ll look at the same data we look at and receive expert analysis of what it all means and how it affects you.

If you’d like to search the MLS like a pro, head on over to www.LeeCountyOnline.com Our database is updated every 5 minutes, so you’ll find hot new properties before other buyers do. If you’d like to list your home now, give us a call. 239-489-4042 We’re easy to talk to and we’re here to help.

Good luck and Happy House Hunting!

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