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Archive for the 'Plantation Real Estate' Category
The single most common question I am asked is, “What is happening with my homes value”? This is not always an easy question to answer because there are so many variables from home to home. There is good news for you if you live in the Broward County, area.
Courtney Silverman Real Estate Group has developed a new internet system that will give you complete information on what is taking place with the market around your home. This program gives complete details on homes listed, sold and value trends. The program offers the numbers in easy to view graph form and it is very detailed and specific to your home and neighborhood. You will even see a Google Earth view of your home and surrounding neighborhood. The best part is that this analysis is sent to you by e-mail and the updated for your monthly. You can take advatage of this great new system by visiting our web site at http://www.courtneysilverman.com/PageManager/Default.aspx/PageID=1628494.
“There are diamonds in this current real estate market – you just have to dig for them” says Mike Pappas, President/CEO of The Keyes Company a large South Florida based full service real estate firm.
Sales Units are up:
“Palm Beach strengthened its unit sales earlier in this cycle and Dade and Broward are gaining momentum” observed Mike Pappas.
Dade County is up 32% in units closed January 2009 compared to January of 2008. The six months ending December 2008 saw a 24% increase over the same 2007 numbers for Dade.
Broward had the highest increase at 38% in January 2009 over January of 2008. The 2nd half of 2008 saw close to a 10% increase over 2007 in Broward.
Palm Beach County closed out January with an 11% increase. Palm Beach’s 3rd and 4th quarter of 2008 was 15% greater than the same period of 2007.
“The combination of incredibly low interest rates and aggressive price reductions are pushing the affordability factor to its highest level in decades. Our internet views on Keyes.com, Realtor.com and all our real estate portals along with property showings are up 50% for January”.
Inventory is down:
‘We are seeing motivated sellers stay in the market and those that don’t need to sell today taking their property off of the market”.
Palm Beach residential inventory has dropped from a high of 44 months in July 2007 and is now at a 17 month supply. Broward is down from December 2007 with a 42 months supply and now stands at 15 months. Dade peaked at a whopping 68 month supply in December 2007 and has dropped to a 24 month supply.
“100’s of our Keyes associates are now Distress Sale Certified and speaking the same language with the banks”.
Prices are at 2003 levels:
Palm Beach single family medium home prices dropped 33% to $225,000 in January 2009, down from $340,000 last year.
Broward single family medium prices closed out at $195,000 down from $316,000.
Dade County also broke the $200,000 mark at $185,000 dropping from $345,000.
The Condominium market had similar trends. Palm Beach condominium median sales were at $107,000 down from $165,000. Broward with its great quantity of suburban condos dropped to $81,000 from $150,000 and Dade County saw a $150,000 medium sales price for Condos from last years $275,000.
“All sellers, distressed and non-distressed are realizing to sell their property it has to be priced where the market will buy - basic economics being demonstrated on a daily basis.”
We have 600 homes for sale in Plantation FL as of today. Sellers are asking from $3,700,000 to $79,000.
47 buyers got their contracts accepted. The prices the sellers were asking ranged between $445,000 and $70,000 when the received their offers. 42% of those contracts were written to purchase bank owned properties and 23% are going to negotiate the purchase with the seller and the seller’s lender(s) as a short sale.
27 properties were sold in Plantation. They were priced between $600,000 and $90,000. This tells us there is over a 22 month supply of homes for sale in Plantation as of February 2009, assuming no more homes are put on the market over that period of time.
Contact Courtney Silverman Real Estate Group to leverage your dollar in this market as a seller and as a buyer!
There have been some upgrades to the Broward County Property Appraiser’s website. Effective October 1st, the site will show:
- Building permits are online
- Click on millage to see your city rates
- Explanations on Homestead
- The ability to search on sub-division sales
Concerning sub-division sales, only arms length transactions are included here. That means foreclosures are disqualified for comparables. “D” means dis-qualified and “Q” means qualified. Another update is that a short sale is now considered a qualified (at arm’s length) transaction.
Also added were more functionality on aerial views. Click on View Map. To the right by Details, you’ll see Pictometry. Click on it and you’ll see 45 degree aerial views of the property from north, south, east and west.
In early August property owners will receive a TRIM notice from Broward County. This notice will show what your property is worth (assessed value) according to the property appraiser. It also shows what your taxes will be for 2008.
Note the market value, the assessed value, just value and the Save Our Homes value. What do these mean? The 
market value is a meaningless number on homesteaded property. Just value is 85% of market value taken one year in arrears. The Save Our Homes Value will reflect the amount that your tax is based on if you have been in the homes for a few years and it is your homestead.
The assessed value is important to you. Ask yourself, “Could I sell the property for the assessed value?” If not, you will be paying too much tax!! What to do? File a petition with the Value Adjustment Board by September 19, 2008. This will give you the right to have a hearing. In the hearing you will have to prove your case. Show sales in your area that have closed prior to Jan 1, 2008. Sales should be similar in size, features and location to your home.The special master (appraiser hired by the County) will hear and consider your evidence. If you have had an appraisal done in 2007 for other purposes (estate, divorce, or mortgage) it can be used to support your case. Also, an agent, such as my business associate, Tom, can be hired to represent you at the hearing. Typically these agents work on a contingent fee basis (40 to 50% of the tax saving). This is a one time fee. If you need help or have questions please call: Thomas R. Wachtstetter ASA IFA, Certified General Appraiser RZ #451
The Feds made another drop in short terms rates yesterday. The Fed is desperately working to turn the nations economy around. The threat of recession continues to be driven by the poor national housing market.
Here in the Broward County markets of Fort Lauderdale, Weston, Davie and Plantation areas, we continue to have one of the best housing markets in the country. It is not the market that we enjoyed 2 years ago, but homes are still selling that are priced properly in the market. The average time on the market here is about 115 days. Courtney Silverman’s inventory are on the market less than 68 days before receiving a contract. There is around 18 months of total home inventory in the Fort Lauderdale, Weston, Davie and Plantation areas. Home price are sliding slowly.
Now is a great time to buy residential real estate.
If you would like to get an idea on what your homes value currently is, visit the web site www.CourtneySilverman.com. This site will allow you to enter in information on your home and then receive a market value analysis by e-mail. It’s always a good idea to get an estimate of your homes value, whether you are planning to sell or not.
Have An Awesome Week!
Courtney Silverman
There is little competition from other buyers. Motivated sellers are setting realistic asking prices. In other words, it’s a more normal home sale market as compared to the record-breaking volume of the last few years.
But there’s another reason to buy a resale house now. Anxious sellers are offering sales incentives. A few offer vacation trips, higher sales commissions to buyer’s agents, and even automobiles as inducements to realty agents and their buyers. I think the best incentive is a mortage buy down. This means the seller will contribute up to 6% of the purchase price to buy down the buyer’s mortgage rate of a fixed loan for the first, second, and third year and then on the fourth year the rate is fixed. This is a great savings each month. It is a much better incentive for a buyer than a price reduction!
THE EASIEST, LEAST EXPENSIVE WAY TO FINANCE A HOME PURCHASE. Especially if you are a “cash challenged” or “credit challenged” home buyer, you will love this finance source. Not every resale home can be financed using this source, but all you need is one.
This under-used home mortgage finance source is the home seller.
With more than 50 percent of U.S. homes owned free and clear with no mortgage, those homes are the best candidates for seller financing. As your Realtor, Courtney Silverman search the local MLS (multiple listing service) listings for homes listed with no existing mortgage. Those sellers are the best prospects for seller carryback mortgage financing.
Instead of sellers taking an all-cash sale and parking the cash in a bank or mutual fund earning around 5 percent interest, suggest the seller of a free-and-clear home carry back the mortgage at 6 percent. That’s a “good deal” for both seller and buyer.
Whenever possible, Courtney Silverman will arange a meeting with the home seller to establish credibility before presenting a purchase offer asking for a seller financed mortgage.
FIVE ADVANTAGES FOR HOME SELLERS OF SELLER FINANCING. In addition to earning a high above-market interest rate, there are many additional seller advantages of financing the home sale that include:
1. Easy quick sale for top dollar. As every merchant and car dealer knows, sales are easiest when the merchandise seller offers easy financing. The same principle applies to home sales where sellers offer easy financing. Price often becomes a non-issue.
2. Vacant houses can be risky for home sellers. If the seller has moved out of the house, this is usually a sign of a very anxious and worried seller, especially if the house has been listed for sale several months. Most sellers of vacant houses will listen to reasonable purchase offers, including seller carryback mortgage terms.
If the seller wants a shorter term than a 20-year seller carryback mortgage, I reply, “Well, let’s amortize the mortgage over 20 years but include an option for you to call the loan due in 10 years.” After 10 years of on-time mortgage payments, sellers rarely exercise that option.
3. Safety of a mortgage or deed of trust on property the seller understands. The major reason home sellers hesitate to carry back a mortgage for their buyer is they fear the buyer will default and not make the monthly payments.
I emphasize this often-unstated fear and explain when a buyer defaults, the seller then can foreclose and either get paid off at the foreclosure sale by a cash bidder or get the home back to resell for a second profit.
4. Installment-sale tax benefits are another seller advantage, especially when the taxable profit exceeds the seller’s $250,000 or $500,000 principal residence sale tax exemption of Internal Revenue Code 121. If the property was not the seller’s principal residence, spreading out the capital gains tax over the years of receiving buyer payments is usually far better than paying a large capital gain tax in the year of the sale.
5. Down-payment cash to pay the home sales expenses. In a typical home seller financing, the buyer makes a cash down payment of 10 percent to 20 percent of the sales price. This down payment is usually sufficient to pay all the sales expenses, including the realty agents’ sales commission.
HOW TO CONVINCE HOME SELLERS TO FINANCE YOUR PURCHASE. Even after explaining all the seller benefits of financing the home sale, some unmotivated sellers are hesitant to carry back a mortgage on the house they are selling.
Methods to Convince are:
(1) offering to prepay six to 12 months of mortgage payments at the closing (instead of a large down payment);
(2) providing a year’s post-dated checks so the seller can deposit a check on the first day of each month; and/or
(3) giving the seller a copy of the buyer’s credit reports and FICO (Fair Isaac Corp.) score obtained at www.myfico.com.
SUMMARY: Especially in the current buyer’s market for homes in most cities, seller mortgage financing is the easiest way to pay for a house or condo purchase with no institutional loan application hassles.
Click here for a glossary of mortgage terms.
21 Snowy Owl, Plantation FL 33324 is the location to entertain your guests. “The outdoor kitchen we added to our patio has increased our enjoyment of our private rear yard. We are really going to miss this home.” stated homeowner Stacey. “Hawks Landing is a great neighborhood. I feel secure with the security at the gate and the roving security patrols. When we are not enjoying our own pool and spa we go to the Hawks Landing Clubhouse. The clubhouse is available to all residents. They have an enormous pool, tennis courts, basketball courts, and volleyball. I use the fitness center and spa services they offer. It has a country club feel here at the clubhouse with an extensive calendar of events targeted for all - both youth activities and adult social events.”
Courtney Silverman, Realtor at The Keyes Company said ”A relocation out of state has made this private luxurious home available for sale. You should see the visual tour of this beauty!”
Details: 5 bedrooms, 3-1/2 baths, marble floors, upgraded fixtures throughout, high ceilings with crown molding, tray ceilings, surround sound inside and outside. The kitchen has beautiful granite counters in a warm color. The vanities in the master bedroom are marble. This home is located on a quiet cul de sac and has a long driveway, increasing privacy.
Contact Courtney Silverman at The Keyes Company Realtors to see this fabulous home.
In Fort Lauderdale, there are a few Outside KitchenVendor Resources that stand out. They are:
Allied Kitchen & Bath 954-564-1611 Ft. Lauderdale
Broward Custom Kitchens 954-960-0550 Pompano Beach
The Kitchenworks, Inc. 954-764-1482 Ft. Lauderdale
Olde Native Trading Company 561-296-9620 West Palm Beach
Outdoor Living Concepts 561-615-1325 West Palm Beach
Shuster Design Associates, Inc. 954-462-6400 Wilton Manors
For resources on any home improvement project, contact Courtney Silverman, The Keyes Comnpany / Realtors
Hawthorn Village Is Maintenance Free Living At Its Best! Spacious 2-Bedroom 2-Bath Home Set At Plantation Preserve Golf Course. This home has a split floor plan, plenty of closet space, conveniently close to the Village Clubhouse and Pool. Formal Living and Dining Rooms, an Open Kitchen with a pass-thru to the Family Room. Mature Trees Shade the Home, yet Plenty of light. Circular Driveway, Garage on Side of Home. Extra Parking in Cul-de-Sac. Ideal for On-The-Go Singles-Families-Retirees.
For more information on properties in Hawthorn Village in Plantation FL, Contact:
Courtney Silverman
954-292-0743
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