Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Housing Investment Amelia Island

Analyst: Housing a good investment in 2010

NEW YORK – Jan. 12, 2010 – Forbes housing reporter and analyst Francesca Levy makes some thought-provoking predictions in the latest issue of the magazine.

She predicts:

• Real estate will be an attractive investment strategy in 2010 with wealthy investors devoting an increasing segment of their portfolios to it.

• Loan modifications will result in more people who should probably be facing foreclosure slipping deeper into debt.

• Cities like Omaha, Neb., and Buffalo, N.Y., which avoided the housing bubble and most of the bust, will be models for cities trying to avoid another bubble.

Financial troubles in Dubai will ripple through the U.S. luxury market, creating energy in a market that has been stagnant.

John Holbrook - Realtor Amelia Island, Fernandina Beach & Yulee, Florida
Cell: 904-415-0171 Email: holbrook66@msn.com Web: www.nassaumls.net
www.johnholbrook.blogspot.com

Jacksonville Home Report

Jacksonville, FL – No Confidence in the Economy, No Buyers at the Door
(5,135 single-family permits in 2008, 18th largest market in the country)

Traffic decreases, falls below expectations. Buyer traffic fell in December, following the gains seen in October and November, as our traffic index declined to 35in December from 46 in November, indicating traffic levels short of agents’ expectations (a reading below 50 suggests traffic short of agents’ expectations). Agents said that buyers have postponed looking for homes because of personal financial instability. Agents indicated that buyers have a poor economic outlook, which has led them to reconsider purchasing homes, despite the high levels of affordability. According to one agent, job losses have been responsible for the sentiment, and have further discouraged buyers from entering the market, even those who had the financial strength.

We also observed this lack of confidence in Jacksonville in our November survey, in which commentary revealed that while traffic improved, clients were unwilling to actually buy. In addition, one agent mentioned the expected expiration of the Nov. 30th tax credit created an earlier stir that led to little December traffic. Prices continue to fall with inventories flat.

Home prices fell again in December, but moved toward stabilization, as our price index increased to 35 from 14 in November, but any reading below 50 indicates lower home prices over the past 30 days. Prices continue to face pressure from a lack of demand and a weak economy. Our home listings index fell to 55 in December from 64 in November, in-line with a neutral reading of 50. We view unchanged inventory levels as a positive indicator of future pricing trends, and expect pricing to improve as demand is likely to return as we enter the spring selling season. However, we still remain concerned over potential foreclosures not listed for sale by banks.

John Holbrook - Realtor Amelia Island, Fernandina Beach & Yulee, Florida
Cell: 904-415-0171 Email: holbrook66@msn.com Web: www.nassaumls.net
www.johnholbrook.blogspot.com

Home Appraisals - Fernandina Beach

Do new home-appraisal rules help?

WASHINGTON – Jan. 12, 2010 – More homebuyers will soon find that their mortgage broker can’t select an appraiser, part of a federal effort to ensure that appraisers aren’t pressured to inflate home values.

Effective Feb. 15, mortgage brokers will no longer be able to order appraisals on loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). For consumers, that is supposed to mean home appraisals will more closely reflect a home’s value. The reason: Brokers who may profit from a loan being approved won’t also be choosing appraisers, who may feel pressured to declare a higher value.

John Holbrook - Realtor Amelia Island, Fernandina Beach & Yulee, Florida
Cell: 904-415-0171 Email: holbrook66@msn.com Web: www.nassaumls.net
www.johnholbrook.blogspot.com

Monday, January 4, 2010

Fernandina Beach Home for Sale

310 South 13th Street
$169,000 mls number 51248
5 bedrooms and 2 baths, better than new, completely refurbished home on a 1/4 acre lot with a large 2 car garage. Close to the community tennis courts and near downtown Fernandina Beach.

Call for a tour!

John Holbrook - Realtor Amelia Island, Fernandina Beach & Yulee, Florida
Cell: 904-415-0171 Email: holbrook66@msn.com Web: www.nassaumls.net
www.johnholbrook.blogspot.com

Regions Bank Update - Amelia Island

FNMA 30 Year Fixed: 5.25%
FNMA 15 Year Fixed: 4.375%
USDA / FHA / VA: 5.375%

Hello Friends,
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

I want to start the New Year with a look into the coming months….what will happen and the trends we are going to see with mortgages and rates.

As of today, new government regulations are in place that will control good faith estimates and our ability to changes fees and costs. I won’t go into great detail…..most of the emphasis is on my end…..but these new rules will place more accountability on mortgage companies and banks to property disclose costs accurately up front. This won’t be an issue.

Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA & VA loan programs continue to tighten. The condo situation in Florida continues to get worse from a lending standpoint. As of now, any condo project that has ONE unit offered as rental will be classified as a “Condotel” and not eligible for financing by any of these groups. We do have products for condotels and will use these programs for our condo customers. Minimum credit scores for FHA & VA have increased to 620 from 580. These types of adjustments will continue and I’ll keep you posted.

You may have seen a slight increase in rates over the past month. A few things are causing this. The Fed is slowing the rate at which it is buying back mortgages from the market. They have worked through nearly all of the $1.25 Trillion allocated and have announced this program will stop at the end of March. The tax credits to first time and existing home owners will play out between April and June. With the end of these government sponsored events, bonds and rates will return to a more “market” position and less influenced by stimulus dollars. Winter has officially arrived and oil prices will rise.

My expectation is that rates will slowly rise from the sub 5% that we enjoyed a few weeks ago to around 6.0%. While this is still very reasonable, it will seem high based on where we’ve been.

Thanks for all your support and I pray we all have a great 2010!

See you soon.
Alan Vanderheiden

John Holbrook - Realtor Amelia Island, Fernandina Beach & Yulee, Florida
Cell: 904-415-0171 Email: holbrook66@msn.com Web: www.nassaumls.net
www.johnholbrook.blogspot.com