Beautiful Friends

Our good friends from Auburn NY were here this past week. We had a fun lunch at Coconuts and when I said it was chilly they informed me it was 11 degrees at home. I hope they are not still waiting on a plane in the Orlando airport. Thank goodness for Florida.

Some good activity in our complexes!

There are now 3 ocean front units in The Diplomat that are under contract. I think this is because regardless of how low the prices have dropped on condos there are still very few direct ocean units priced under $300,000.

The 3 that are under contract are as follows:

All the units are 2 bedroom 2 bath units with 900 sq ft.
Unit listed at $259,900 under contract and is a 1st floor unit.
Unit listed at $219,900 under contract and is another 1st floor unit.
Unit listed at $289,900 under contract and is a 2nd floor unit. This unit has been undated.

It really does surprise me that the unit in Windward East hasn’t gone under contract as yet. This unit is on the 3rd floor with 2 bedrooms 2 baths. The unit has been updated and offers 1316 sq ft. It is a side view of the ocean but it is still a good view and buy.

Fannie Mae

We are currently working on 3 contracts that are being underwritten by Fannie Mae. These are contracts on Cocoa Beach condos so the process has been rather time consuming. One contract is in the Xanadu and has been extended twice for insurance certificate. It can still be accomplished but requires tenacity.

Jim Bagwell

Fannie Mae in Florida

Well we are finally thawing out and we are definitely spoiled living in Florida. Our great friends in upstate NY gives us a weather update and I don't see how they survive.

There is yet another new listing in the oceanfront Diplomat that is priced at $289,800. This unit is fully furnished but I feel the competition of larger oceanfront units on the market is hurting The Diplomat.

There is also a short sale in the front building of Windrush that is under contract. This unit was priced at $139,900 and we will have to see what the unit closes for after bank approval.

FYI

Fannie Mae has singled out Florida for their new requirements for mortgages. Most of you know that Fannie Mae is the biggest underwriter in the business followed by Freddie Mac, Freddie Mac usually always follows Fannie Mae's lead. Miami Real Estate experts say this is the nail in the coffin for their condo market.

Some of the requirements are as follows:

2nd homes or investment condos will require at least 25% down payment and could move to 30%.

New construction is almost impossible to finance thru Fannie Mae. No entity can own over 10% of the units. At least 70% of the units must be closed or under contract. Fannie Mae will do their own review of the condo associations as in the past lenders were allowed to do their own review. This is an expensive process that can run as high as $1500 for the 1st unit under contract, paid by the buyer.

In all associations there can be no more than 15% of owners behind in their dues. This will kill a lot of smaller associations ( it may be better to try to get the review later in the month ).

I would hope that our state government will fight to change these requirements as we have to save the condo market as it is so large.

In the meantime we are gearing up to meet these requirements and it is imperative that the managers gear up on knowledge of their association. The Fannie Mae form of application is now intense as far as number of renters, foreclosures and etc.

Jim Bagwell

Cocoa Beach Condo Market

Happy New Year to all

Not a lot of activity in our complexes so far this new year, there is a front unit in The Diplomat that went under contract. The unit was priced at $149,900 so it was priced well, this unit was also fully furnished and showed well. Surprisingly the 1st floor ocean front unit in The Diplomat is still on the market with 2 bedrooms 2 baths and 900 sq ft, the views are pretty good and it is priced at $239,900, needs work but still not a bad sq ft price for oceanfront.

I am sure most of you have seen the 2008 foreclosure numbers. Florida has moved to the number 2 position behind Nevada.

On the beach side we are fortunate in that we have been rather unscathed in this market. At this writing the MLS shows 19 bank owned but in reality there are 15 since some listing agents just listed the properties incorrectly. There are however 69 short sales.

One of the foreclosures is in the Almar in south Cocoa Beach. Never lived in unit with 2713 sq ft 4 bedrooms 3 ½ baths, it is on the 4th floor of a 5th floor bldg. It is now priced at $499,900.or $184.26 a sq ft.

Enjoy the moment!

Jim Bagwell

Happy Holidays

It has been awhile since I have updated and I apologize. It has been a busy time for this time of year.

It is totally a different market today in that almost all the offers submitted by our agents involve short sales or foreclosures. When you get a well priced property that doesn’t involve a short sale process it is gravy. We do have a short sale team in our company so we are prepared for any development.

I am very glad to report that the 1 bedroom unit in Windward East did sell for $175,555. This unit was on the market for 212 days. I understand the seller’s situation changed since the time they purchased the unit so I am delighted they were able to find a buyer. I feel this was a win, win situation for both the buyer and seller.

Condo Boards

As I understand it we are losing our president of the board at Windward East. I know it is a thankless job and yes I complain as well. I think Tony Longo did a great job and he will be missed.

Jim Bagwell

Cocoa Beach art show

If you are in town be sure and check out the Cocoa Beach art show. It is always a great time with some incredible art. Unfortunately my wife usually makes me buy something.

There have been 2 new listings in our complexes the past week.

The Diplomat

There is a new front building listing on the market, 2 bedroom, 1 bedroom on the 2nd floor. Listed at $162,000, it appears to be a nice unit and priced about where it should be in today’s market.

Windward East

A 3rd floor side view is now on the market. 2 bedroom 2 bath with 1316 sq ft listed at $325,000, this unit has been updated and is priced at a good price for the market.

Hope you have a great weekend.

Jim Bagwell

Last night shuttle launch

We took this picture last night during an open house at the historical home we have listed on the Indian River in Titusville. It is amazing that during the early 1900’s people used to gather in the back yard to watch riverboats now they gather to watch the shuttle.

No new activity to report in our 3 complexes for the last week.

One of the problems that are facing condo associations in today’s market are short sales and foreclosures. Usually for a successful short sale to occur the owner has to be behind in their mortgage payments, this usually means they have also stopped paying their fees. It goes without saying that when a foreclosure occurs the owners are not paying their fees. I don’t see this problem in our complexes but it is especially prevalent in new complexes bought recently in the escalated market. Of course the south Florida market is overwhelmed with this problem. Locally you are seeing a lot of associations cutting back on services or raising monthly dues. Again I don’t see this happening in our associations.

By Florida law when a lender forecloses on a condominium the lender is responsible for paying the monthly fees. When a foreclosed unit is sold the lender is responsible for the immediate 6 months previous to closing of unpaid dues or 1% of the original mortgage amount whatever is less. Now in real life we are seeing the banks simply not paying so there will have to be an attorney involved.

Florida law also states that the previous owner and the new owner of a sold foreclosed unit are jointly and severally liable for all unpaid fees and liens are allowed to be placed on the unit if the past dues are not paid 30 days after closing. Now I think you would have to look at this in a business point of view. Does the association block the contract and still not have anyone paying the fees or do you go ahead and write off the loss and get someone in the unit who will pay the dues.

Hope this is not too complicated and we should be grateful where we own condos.

Jim Bagwell

Thank a Vet

Another beautiful Florida day, I must admit it is hard to complain about where we live.

Veteran’s day is upon us again. With the election and the economic downturn debacle we are currently enduring we sometimes lose touch with some very important issues. There are still American men and women dying on foreign soil and it is being largely overlooked unless you have a loved one in the conflicts that are underway. Most enlisted men and women have significant others who are in the same economy that we civilians are facing today, the big difference is with the pay scale enjoyed by enlisted personnel in today’s military they are more dependent on the 2nd income than most especially when children are involved. There is also the small item of facing hostile action everyday they are in harm’s way. So I just ask that we give thoughts to the sacrifices being made by all our military serving all Americans.

Interesting thing about the market.

There are a small number of oceanfront condos in The Diplomat. At this writing there are 5 units on the market. They are priced as follows:

1st floor, all have 900 sq ft with 2 bedrooms and 2 baths.
1. "motivated seller" Priced at $239,900.
2. Realtor owned, Priced at $259,900
3. On the market for 21 days and priced at $324,900

3rd floor
1. Same floor plan, better view obviously priced at $375,000

The big unit
2520 sq ft unit, 3 bedrooms,3 baths, priced at $699,900.

You have to make your own deductions about this info.

There is now a short sale in the Meridian, priced at $550,000, never lived in with all amenities and upgrades.

Jim Bagwell