Orlando Real Estate

Home staging should be required for all listings!

How many homes in Orlando Florida do you see on the market that are total dogs?  Believe me when I say, there are too many.

Right now in Orlando Florida, there are many homes on the market with only so many per month selling.  As an Orlando real estate agent, it's our job to educate our clients on what sells Orlando houses; and in this market, only the best looking homes are selling.  There are too many choices for buyers to waste their time on the dogs, or even the mediocre for that matter.  Your home has to be the best of the best.

Read Also:  Realtors Weigh In on The Best green Updates

If you've ever wandered into a home builder's model home and been blown away by the decor...you've seen home staging.  Even if your home has great decor and you have impeccable taste, please realize that your taste is not everyone's taste.  Home staging is all about making the home appeal to everyone.  And in today's market, that is imperative.  Many people also think home staging is going to cost you money.  On the contrary, it will help you get more money from the sale of your home.  You'll spend a little, but the rewards will be tenfold.

Read Also:  Preparing Your House for Sale

If you don't know what home staging is, or if you need more information, please visit our friend Cassandra Branson with Mango Tree Interior Design.

Bidding Wars on Foreclosures Indicate Recovery

Mid priced homes are still the most popular, and even though prices keep falling some buyers are seeing stiff competition when trying to purchase a foreclosure.

It is a very good sign our housing economy is recovering when we see bidding wars in a few parts of the U.S. as buyers compete with investors for the same foreclosures. Real Estate brokers say they are now getting multiple offers on certain homes.

Across the country the amount of unsold homes still swamps the demand from buyers. House prices have continued to fall and lenders are now stepping up and taking action on delinquent borrowers since the slowing of foreclosures in late 2008.

This action is still confined to certain markets like parts of California, Arizona and the Washington, D.C., and Minneapolis-St. Paul metro areas.

South Florida and New York City still remain glutted though, but these early signs indicate these areas might be the next with increased competition.

To see changes in the housing markets in 28 major areas go to:

http://online.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/retro-HAGERTY.html

       Many people have found themselves outbid by investors who can pay cash for the homes. Homes in Los Angeles with a price range of $300,000 tend to sell very quickly. Ed Mixon of Altera Real Estate, says the homes in the Santa Ana area and priced around that $300,000 are "blazing hot". Mixon has a client that has been outbid four times when searching for a home for her family of five.

On Wednesday, the Federal Housing Finance Agency reported that home prices nationwide rose a seasonally adjusted 0.7% in February from January, led by gains on the West Coast. When compared with a year earlier, however, home prices were down 6.5%.

Are we on the road for more bidding wars? Right now bidding wars are the exception rather than the rule, but soon the time might come where we see steep competition for some of the foreclosures and short sales fueling this down turn in the housing market.

Bidding wars -- common during the housing boom -- had all but disappeared soon after the market peaked about three years ago. Even now, they remain the exception rather than the rule.

For information on great real estate buys in Orlando and nearby suburbs,
contact the Orlando Property Group, your short sale and luxury home specialists.

Or Search Now for Real Estate & Homes in the Orlando Florida Area

Looking for specific information regarding Orlando Florida real estate prices and communities? Get Your Free Market Snapshot

Read Also: What to Expect With a Foreclosure

Read Also: Federal Foreclosure Relief Plan May Skip Orlando Homeowners

Read Also: Orlando Florida Facts & Resources

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If you are wanting to sell your Seminole County or Orlando area home in the next 6 to12 months, now is the time to begin putting your plan into place while time is still on your side. Please contact us for any real estate assistance you may need.

We're experts at putting people together with homes they love and can afford. Contact us today for information on Orlando and Seminole County real estate, Orlando & Seminole County homes for sale, Orlando & Seminole County relocation information, a free market analysis of your Orlando area or Seminole County home or statistics on homes in Orlando & Seminole County Florida or the surrounding Central Florida area, including Seminole County, Orange County, Lake County and Volusia County. We're always available to answer your questions!

Recession is Slowing Economists Say

Sara Johnson, an analyst from the National Association of Business Economics April Industry Survey, says "Declines still out number gains, but fewer firms are reporting declines and more are reporting gains." Does this mean the end is near? Will Orlando's Real Estate market begin its recovery?

 Johnson also an economist at HIS Global Insight says "This suggests that the economy is at an inflection point but has not yet reached a turning point." A key factor in the housing recovery is the unemployment numbers. Although unemployment has remained depressed for the first quarter of 2009, with only 14% of firms hiring new workers and 39% reducing their payroll to help balance their budgets, there is a definite up rise of plans for future increases in employment.  In a recent poll 16% of companies plan to increase employment over the next six months.

 More telling is that income levels were dismal in the first quarter.  For the first time in the history of the survey, more firms were reducing wages and salaries than raising pay.  The survey is based on data from 109 businesses and industry groups from the first quarter of 2009. 

 Adding to NABE's prognosis, Paul Volcker, senior economic adviser to President Barack Obama, said that the U.S. economic recovery will be a "long slog" but that the rate of decline "is going to slow."

 This is excellent news for home sellers out there. As unemployment lessens and more jobs come onto the market home sales will increase and so will house prices.

For information on great real estate buys in Orlando and nearby suburbs,
contact the Orlando Property Group, your short sale and luxury home specialists.

Or Search Now for Real Estate & Homes in the Orlando Florida Area

Looking for specific information regarding Orlando Florida real estate prices and communities? Get Your Free Market Snapshot

Read Also: Orlando Florida Relocation Resource Guide

Read Also: Business 2.0 Magazine has named Orlando the number 1 hottest market with America's best jobs.

Read Also: Orlando Florida Facts & Resources

Read Also: Orlando Florida City - Everything You Need To Know!

If you are wanting to sell your Seminole County or Orlando area home in the next 6 to12 months, now is the time to begin putting your plan into place while time is still on your side. Please contact us for any real estate assistance you may need.

We're experts at putting people together with homes they love and can afford. Contact us today for information on Orlando and Seminole County real estate, Orlando & Seminole County homes for sale, Orlando & Seminole County relocation information, a free market analysis of your Orlando area or Seminole County home or statistics on homes in Orlando & Seminole County Florida or the surrounding Central Florida area, including Seminole County, Orange County, Lake County and Volusia County. We're always available to answer your questions.

This Charleston-design custom home is located in the prestigious Sullivan Ranch in Mount Dora. This exquisite home boasts three floors of luxury living, with each level easily accessible by elevator. The second floor beckons you to step outdoors onto an expansive balcony perfect for entertaining and enjoying the panoramic views. Every room is beautifully appointed with the finest touches from the grand foyer and dramatic winding staircase to the game room and wraparound porch. Custom molding and French doors are used extensively throughout the home, and genuine cherry wood cabinetry with granite counters appeals to both senses of sight and touch. Four bedrooms, three full bathrooms and a powder room offer a relaxing retreat for your family and guests at day's end.

The gourmet kitchen features, high-end stainless appliances, breakfast bar, custom cabinetry, and a butler's pantry plus the center island every busy chef demands. The sunlit cafe dining area leads to an elegant, sunken family room with a gas fireplace, then flows out to the wrap-around porch with tongue-and-groove ceiling and speaker system. Nearly every room of this desirable home is enhanced with stunning fixtures with mood-setting dimmers and built-in speakers.

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Taming the Jumbo Mortgage in the Orlando Florida Real Estate Market

Everyone knows the jumbo loan market has been out of whack for nearly 18 months. "Jumbo" loans, those amounting to more than $417,000, took it on the chin, especially in Orlando Florida's real estate market, when mortgage investors stopped buying subprime and alternative loans. For that reason, jumbo rates can be as much as 1.50 percent higher than conforming rates. Historically, jumbo rates were only about a quarter of a percent higher than a conforming rate, but this new spread has kept many out of the Orlando Florida housing market: especially those that we refer to as, "just jumbo."

So what exactly is "just jumbo?" It's a loan amount that just exceeds the conforming limit of $417,000 and typically reflects a sales price in the $500,000­­-$600,000 range. The Orlando Florida Real Estate market offers many homes in this price category, but the marked difference in rate from conforming to jumbo is slowing down Orlando's real estate sales. What is the difference in payment between a conforming loan at 6 percent and a jumbo loan at 7.50 percent? On a $500,000 jumbo loan, mortgage payments jump from $2,997 to $3,496 a month. That's almost $500 more!

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