Jacksonville Beaches Real Estate

WASHINGTON – Dec. 14, 2007 – Hundreds of thousands of minority and moderate-income home buyers would become eligible to get low-rate, low-down-payment mortgages insured by the federal government under an agreement struck yesterday in the Senate. The measure, which had been held up by a lone senator, Republican Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, is expected to get a full floor vote today or Monday. It would greatly expand the Federal Housing Administration’s mortgage insurance program that helps people with questionable credit get low-interest home loans. The delay of the bill drew the ire of the Bush administration and House lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, as the pressure increased on the federal government to address the worsening mortgage crisis. The House passed its version in September, 348 to 72. The legislation aims to draw people away from subprime loans, which offer low “teaser” rates that can jump as high as 11 percent after two or three years. By the summer of 2010, about 600,000 ...

In this day of information overload, it's easy to feel like we know more than we really do. I often hear people say: "I know your seller bought the house in 2004 for ______ amount". Yes, this public information is easy to find. I always give the tax info with the amount a seller paid to my buyers when we look at property. This is merely a starting point and often doesn't tell the entrire story. Have you considered a possible, second mortgage, often even a third mortgage? Many homes have a HELOC in addition to second and third mortgages. I think buyers just assume that every seller is trying to make a "killing" with every sell. This is often NOT the case. Some sellers are walking away with ZERO but at least they didn't have to bring money to the table!! Facts. Make sure your REALTOR always gives you as much info as possible. My cream puff at 12641 Ashglen Dr continues to be shown like crazy. I am going to reduce the price and take away the clos...

I've posted this before, but this is definitely worth repeating on Halloween!! I continually hear people say that their realtor bugged them for weeks to get them to list their house with them. They finally agreed to list it and they never saw the realtor again!! I'm not exaggerating! Check out this story.... New example of a “list em and leave em” real estate company Wednesday, May 02, 2007JANESVILLE, Wis. — A couple checking out a house for sale were shocked to discover the 55-year-old homeowner dead in her bed. Authorities said foul play was not suspected. Real estate agent Linda Chabucos-Galow stood in the dining room while Justin and Colleen McKeen walked through a house Monday night. Before long, she heard Colleen McKeen scream."I thought, 'What's wrong?' Maybe it was a dead mouse or something," Chabucos-Galow said.But then she peered into the bedroom and saw the body of Linda L. O'Leary. An autopsy determined O'Leary had been dead for two t...

After spending the past 3 days looking at homes from St. Johns County all the way to the Northern most end of Duval County, I am beginning to think that the market has picked up! I was pleasantly surprised to see that several of the homes we were interested in had gotten contracts in just the past 4 or 5 days. I'm not sure exactly what this means because I don't know what the homes "closed" at. I won't know what the homes sold for until they actually close in a few weeks. I also heard from several Realtors that I scheduled showing appointments with, that they have had a LOT of activity on their listings. I wonder if this means that we truly have finally bottomed out? I will say this, there continues to be new listings posted every night in MLS, and the prices continue to drop on homes already on the market. I don't know if the influx of new listings is just seasonal, or if it's people "testing the market" again. I'm anxious to see the numbers...

This beautiful South Jacksonville Beach home has been completely refurbished from top to bottom. Including all new siding, new insulation, new paint, new roof, new tile floors, new plumbing, new kitchen appliances, new decks, new lighting and more! This home is located on a quiet, one-way street and is just steps to the beach!! The master retreat has a balcony with a great ocean view. Call today to schedule your private showing. Ronda Densford, REALTOR (904) 241-2386

This 3/2 home is in a lovely deed restricted community near UNF, FCCJ, Town Center, the Beaches, JT Butler, 9A and all of Jacksonville! New landscaping completed October. Irrigation system, owned alarm system, new central air, like new carpet, fresh paint, move in ready. Motivated seller will pay up to $3000 of buyers closing costs with approved offer. Call today and schedule your private showing. $215,000.00

The Feds feel compelled to rescue some of the people that got caught up in the SubPrime lending schemes. The reduction in the prime rate appears to be helping those that are trying to get a loan, but I'm not sure how much it's really going to help those that are in danger of being foreclosed on. The "tiny print" of the "fix" the Feds are proposing, is unsettling at best. The borrower must be current on their loan and have equity in their home. The problem is this: (1) they are late on their payments, that's why they're in danger of going into foreclosure (2) they bought the house with 100% financing, thus, zero equity. In fact, worst case scenario: they are upside down!! My gosh this is complicated and sad. I don't think that I could get into that foreclosure business. They say you can actually HELP a homeowner that's in trouble by negotiating with the lenders and buying them some time to get their affairs in order. They can try to negotiat...

I'm hesitant to post an article like this but felt like I might miss something in the translation. The info in the article is sobering. The bottom line appears to be that those with ARM's are having a lot of trouble getting permanent financing on their loans that are resetting. Not only that, but now the folks qualified for a loan that WASN'T subprime, no longer qualify for that same loan! What does this mean for you? It just confirms that it's truly a buyers market in Jacksonville. These homeowners will need to get out from under the new payments in a BAD way. Call me today and let's go look at some houses! Mortgage brokers say one-third of clients failed to close in August Loan fundings not always the cause of cancellations, survey finds Tuesday, September 11, 2007 By Matt Carter Inman News A new survey of mortgage brokers reveals that one in three prospective home buyers who had signed purchase and sale agreements in August ended up cancelling. August was a tu...

Prices in the Jacksonville area continue to drop. It's been subtle in some areas, and "in your face" in others. I'm beginning to wonder how appraisers are managing! There aren't hardly any comps to use because sales have been super slow! MLS continues to show numerous drops in price every single day. How low will it go??? I'll keep you posted...

Not only are there a gazillion houses on the market, the interest rates continue to DROP . This is amazing! If you have good credit and a down payment, now is the time to buy your dream house. Sellers are absolutely giving buyers ANYTHING they want. I've heard about Plasma TV's , furniture, closing costs and all kinds of things being thrown in the pot when contracts are written! Good grief. What the heck are you waiting for? Call me today 904-241-2386 or 904-885-9907 and let's get out there and get you a house AND a riding lawn mower (or whatever it is you need) and close the deal! NEWS ITEM: Rates on 30-year mortgages drop to the lowest point in 3 months Mortgage Rate Trend Index If mortgage industry experts polled by Bankrate .com are right, mortgage rates will decline over the next 30 to 45 days. While 23 percent expect no change, 77 percent foresee a decline and none predict an increase.WASHINGTON – Aug. 31, 2007 – Rates on 30-year mortgages fell this week to the lowes...

This is a post worth repeating: I continually hear people say that their realtor bugged them for weeks to get them to list their house with them. They finally agreed to list it and they never saw the realtor again!! I'm not exaggerating! Check out this story.... New example of a “list em and leave em” real estate company Wednesday, May 02, 2007JANESVILLE, Wis. — A couple checking out a house for sale were shocked to discover the 55-year-old homeowner dead in her bed. Authorities said foul play was not suspected. Real estate agent Linda Chabucos-Galow stood in the dining room while Justin and Colleen McKeen walked through a house Monday night. Before long, she heard Colleen McKeen scream."I thought, 'What's wrong?' Maybe it was a dead mouse or something," Chabucos-Galow said.But then she peered into the bedroom and saw the body of Linda L. O'Leary. An autopsy determined O'Leary had been dead for two to three weeks, Rock County Coroner Jenifer Keach sa...

I have been amazed and a tad discouraged by all of the media hype about the real estate market. I think they have painted such a gloomy picture that it really doesn't matter what is happening....people believe what they read! The market here at the Beach continues to sputter along with a little activity here and there. I guess compared to the rest of the city, we're rocking! I finally sold my client from Wisconsin a house! The Julington Creek area in Northern St Johns county continues to have a HUGE inventory of homes on the market. Unlike other areas, the prices appear to be staying somewhat stable. I think it has everything to do with the incredible school system they have. We were delighted to find the house in time to get enrolled in school. A few new listings have appeared on the market here in Selva Marina, and a few have expired and been removed from the market. Are you looking for a bargain? Call me today and I'll get busy and find you a "steal". It...

This was in the Jacksonville Business Journal daily update: 40% Chance of Lower Home Prices Jacksonville Business Journal - 3:41 PM EDT Tuesday, June 19, 2007 There is a two in five chance that home prices will be lower in Jacksonville in two years, according to figures from PMI Mortgage Insurance Co. The company's 2007 U.S. Market Risk Index ranks the 50 largest metropolitan statistical areas in the country according to the likelihood that prices will drop in the next two years. The rankings are based on home price appreciation, per capita household income and mortgage rates. Jacksonville's score of 394 translates into a 39.4 percent chance prices will be lower in 2009. Four Florida MSAs -- West Palm Beach, Orlando, Fort Lauderdale and Tampa -- have a better than 50 percent chance of prices being lower in two years. Jacksonville's score was No. 22 in the rankings of the top 50 MSAs, in part because appreciation of home prices went from 22 percent in the first quarter of 20...

Rates on 30-year mortgages jump Mortgage Rate Trend Index Rates will continue to rise over the next 30 to 45 days, say 58 percent of the mortgage experts polled by Bankrate.com. Only 16 percent say rates will fall; the remaining 26 percent predicting little change. WASHINGTON – June 8, 2007 – Rates on 30-year mortgages rose for a fourth straight week, hitting the highest level in 10 months, as bond markets responded to strong employment growth.Mortgage giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.53 percent this week. That was up sharply from 6.42 percent last week and represented the highest point for 30-year mortgages since they averaged 6.55 percent on Aug. 10. I think the rates are going to continue to rise in the coming months. If you're sitting on the fence right now, thinking about buying---I think you'd better consider making your move! Call me today and we'll talk about making an offer on one of those over-priced houses out th...

...NAR lowers expectations for home sales, prices Forecast calls for 1.3% drop in median existing-home prices Wednesday, June 06, 2007 Inman News The National Association of Realtors again lowered its forecast for 2007 existing-home sales today, following a downward adjustment last month, and also lowered expectations for home prices. Existing-home sales are expected to fall 4.6 percent this year to 6.18 million, compared with 6.48 million in 2006, with new single-family home sales dropping 18.2 percent and housing starts dropping 20.4 percent. Housing starts for single-family units are expected to decline 23 percent this year compared to 2006. From Inman News This news really surprises me! After attending class at NEFAR for the past 2 days, I was hearing all kinds of optimism from other agents. I think if you're representing buyers, you are loving this market! For those of us that also have listings, it's not all that fun.... To be continued...

...A day after the U.S. Commerce Department reported a surge in the sale of new homes across the country, FAR reported that sales of existing single-family homes in the first quarter of 2007 fell 26 percent in Florida, while the median price dropped 3 percent to $237,000. In Jacksonville, sales dropped 14 percent from the first quarter of last year and the median price edged up 1 percent to $199,500. Sales were down by at least 9 percent in 19 of the 20 markets tracked by FAR. Jacksonville was one of only six markets that saw an increase in the median price, with none more substantial than the 4 percent increase in Tallahassee. In the condominium market, things were even worse. The median price of an existing condo in Jacksonville dipped 7 percent to $152,300, and sales were down 23 percent from the first quarter a year ago. Sales were down 30 percent statewide and the median price was up less than 1 percent to $210,800... This info was provided by FAR (FL Association of Realtors) and ...

"...Mortgage giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.37 percent nationwide this week, up from 6.21 percent last week. It was the highest level for 30-year mortgages since they averaged 6.40 percent the week of Oct. 26.Analysts said the second consecutive weekly increase in 30-year mortgage rates after they had been unchanged or fallen for a month reflected concerns in financial markets that inflation worries will keep the Fed from cutting rates in coming months."Stronger than expected consumer confidence and recent comments from members of the Fed raised some inflation concerns in the market, causing it to lower expectations of a Fed rate cut this year," said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist." Maybe this is the impetus needed to make some buyers get off the fence. With interest rates rising, NOW may be the time to make that offer on a home you've been looking at! It could mean saving a LOT of money on a...

This is one of my favorite listings! I'd love to show it to you at your convenience. Just give me a call and I'll be happy to meet you there. 34 South 26th Ave Jacksonville Beach, FL This beautiful beach home is just steps to the ocean. It has been completely refurbished, including: new paint, new roof, new appliances, new tile, new lighting fixtures, new pulmbing fixtures, new siding, new insulation, and much more! This home is now like new. Listed at $895,000 MLS #350763

I have been watching our own little world right here in Jacksonville. The press releases and the information that I kept hearing just didn't match up with what I was reading right on our own MLS! I knew the national story was bleak too after spending countless hours in newsgroups and doing research. I came across this article and thought it was finally giving some concrete numbers to the dreary picture I have been seeing. See if you don't find the article below VERY credible. Closing Data : We purchase and compile actual home closing data for approximately 181 counties across the country, which captures the counties where about 55 percent of the U.S. population lives and a significant percentage of all of the counties where the large home builders are active. This data shows that sales have fallen 22 percent if you compare sales over the last 12 months to the prior 12 months. On a straight year-over-year comparison, the decline is much more. Mortgage Bankers Association (MB...