Home sales are actually UP in Ocala/Marion county so far this month according to an article in the Ocala Star Banner yesterda. We’re not currently booming or busting … we’re just easing off the throttle a little bit. The market is adjusting and buyer activity is beginning to increase again now that we’ve had our annual Parade of Homes. Here’s the link to the Ocala Star Banner article

Existing Home Sales Fall Sharply In Florida

By SHANNON BEHNKEN sbehnken@tampatrib.com
TBO.com Site Search | Tribune archive from 1990

TAMPA - Florida’s existing homes market is cooling faster than any other state’s, largely because some buyers can’t find or afford homeowner insurance, real estate experts said Thursday.

“If we don’t get this insurance problem resolved, the good future we see for Florida might not happen,” warned Nancy Riley, president-elect of the Florida Association of Realtors and an agent for Coldwell Banker in St. Petersburg.

“We help so many people find houses they can afford, but when you add the property insurance and taxes, the home is no longer affordable.”

Sales of existing homes have slid dramatically statewide. According to data released Thursday by the Florida Realtors group, sales in April showed a 31 percent decline compared with sales at the same time last year. That was one of the largest sales declines in the nation.

Sales slid 13 percent in the state from March through April, and nearly every metropolitan area in Florida saw double-digit decreases in existing home sales.

The Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater area had one of the state’s largest drops: 37 percent when compared with the same time last year.

By comparison, sales fell 5.7 percent nationwide from April 2005 through April and dipped 2 percent from March to April.

Lawrence Yun, an economist with the National Association of Realtors, said every state is seeing a cooling in the residential real estate market because of rising mortgage rates, but Florida is being affected by upheaval in the property insurance market.

Florida’s Situation ‘Worrisome’
“The nationwide housing market is cooling in an orderly fashion, … but Florida’s situation is very worrisome due to the insurance market,” Yun said.

“People are still moving to Florida at record numbers because of the strong job market, but they are not all buying homes anymore,” Yun said.

Existing home prices in the Tampa region, which have gone up by double-digits for the past five years, went up only slightly, from a median price of $222,800 in March to a median price of $225,500 in April.

Riley said she expects sales numbers to worsen during the next several months as the market feels the effects of insurance companies dropping customers.

“We’re just starting to feel this,” she said.

Thursday’s reports came on the heels of numbers released Wednesday by the Commerce Department showing a slight increase, 4.9 percent, in new home sales for April. That report also showed an 11.2 percent drop in new home sales since January.

Yun said new home sales probably aren’t being hurt by insurance costs because new homes meet tough hurricane building codes and are more attractive to insurers.

The difficulty in finding and affording property insurance is weighing on the real estate market at a time when more homes are on the market than last year and are taking longer to sell. In some cases, homes are selling for less than the listing price.

Agents at title insurance companies, which help settle home sales, said they haven’t seen closings canceled or postponed because of problems getting or affording property insurance.

Insurance Not Only Factor
“People don’t buy or sell totally based on the price of their homeowner’s insurance,” said Cathy Anderson, of Fidelity National Title Insurance Co., which has 18 operations in the Tampa Bay area.

Ron Donalson, a principal with Alday-Donalson Title Agencies of America, said, “Insurance is high, but I don’t think it’s impossible to get it.”

George Bodmer, of Bayside Realty Group and past president of the Greater Tampa Association of Realtors, said the numbers are down because of a mixture of insurance and home costs. But Florida’s market will remain strong, he said, because the population is increasing and people need a place to live.

“You have a choice,” he said. “You can invest and get the reward of appreciation or you rent and let the landlord get the profits.”

What’s happening today in the Ocala/Marion County MLS (today’s listings, price changes, etc.) Ocala MLS E-update

Enjoy!

Justin

Okay, so here’s the deal. One of the first things that I do every morning when I wake up is check my e-mail. I hate being out of the loop and one of the ways I avoid that is by checking my e-mail religiously! Aside from the typical client e-mails, newsletter e-mails, etc. I also get a daily e-update from the Ocala/Marion County Multiple Listing Service. In this e-mail I’ll get a link to what we call the “hot sheet”. The hot sheet basically consists of all the properties that were listed, expired, or went through a price change the day before. So I had an idea!

I’ve decided to include this link at the bottom of each of my postings. That way, even if you’re not interested in my daily rants and raves you can skip directly to the bottom of the article and follow the link to the Marion County “hot sheet”. Then, you will always be aware of what hot new properties are hitting the market.

Check it out!

Click Here for the Ocala/Marion County Daily e-Update

- Justin

Hello all!

I just wanted to let you guys know about a new property that we have listed in Volusia County. This property is very beautiful and unique. It is a 4/2 Palm Harbor manufactured home on 10.27 acres. It is located off of HWY 92 between Deland and Daytona Beach. Talk about country living at its finest! This home was built in 2002 and is in immaculate condition.

Some extras include a detached workshop, shed, two paddocks, tractor, box-blade, and front-end loader. You can check out the full detail on this property by CLICKING HERE!

This property is being offered at $470,000 and the owner will consider holding a small note. If you would be interested in seeing this property then please don’t hesitate to contact me through our WEBSITE.

- Justin