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Tag Archives: Flood Insurance


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What’s Up With Housing?

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These 16 sky-high urban green spaces and edible gardens will grow on you.
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The short answer: Federal flood insurance is a mess and expensive to fix. Government-subsidized NFIP celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, but it hasn’t aged well. It’s deeply in debt and critics say below-market premiums encourage risky construction.
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Borrowers may have a little bit of breathing room if the Federal Reserve delays future interest rate increases that directly impact ARMs and, indirectly, FRMs.
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Gulf Coast commercial real estate markets are poised to continue to generate high growth again in 2019, mirroring — or even eclipsing — the region’s robust stalwart performance of the past year. 
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With more millennials eyeing homeownership, builders are appealing to the city-dweller demographic by designing luxury townhomes.
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Drawing upon the expertise of the industry’s 1 million landscape, lawn care, irrigation and tree care professionals, NALP annually predicts trends that will influence the design and maintenance of backyards across America in the year ahead.
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Falling mortgage rates energized builder confidence in the market for newly-built single-family homes. 


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What’s Up With Housing?

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Latest Florida Realtors data shows Single-family home sales up 8.5% year-over-year; condo-townhouse sales up 14.1%, due in part to rising inventory of active listings.
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Florida timeshare companies and exit companies are blaming each other for rising default rates, with the timeshare industry now lobbying lawmakers and regulators for policy changes.
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National flood insurance, like the 2018 hurricane season, ended at midnight last evening. Many observers predict another short-term extension for NFIP, but newly elected 2019 lawmakers may be more open to a long-term extension that also keeps rates affordable.
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This move could speed closings and reduce costs, but appraisers warn that automated processes are not as reliable.
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The federal agency that creates conventional loan limits for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will raise max amounts 6.9% – to $484,350 for most single-family 2019 loans.
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What’s Up With Housing?

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Happy Thanksgiving

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Federal statistics show that Realtors are twice as likely as the general public to be victims of violent crime.
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Residential market is so strong that developers are changing plans for major projects to meet rising demand.
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Listing your house for sale in this low-competition environment could net you more money than your renovations otherwise would.
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The National Flood Insurance program expires again Nov. 30. According to NAR, about 1,300 home sales could be disrupted every day if so – 40K sales each month.
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Harvard report: Adults older than 50 own 50% of all U.S. homes, and many aren’t financially ready to retire with inadequate savings after the recent recession. Many may be forced to sell, especially if they carry a mortgage and unexpected bills come in.


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What’s Up With Housing?

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It’s been 10 years since the Great Recession, but most home prices in the Tampa Bay area still haven’t reached their pre-recession peak, according to numbers released by Zillow.
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The CFPB had about 1,200 reverse-mortgage consumer complaints over 3 years. People cited “confusion and frustration over the terms” and loan-servicing problems.
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Home buyers young and old want high-tech features in their homes. Across the board, and across the generations, security and convenience are of primary interest.
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Despite rising prices, Tampa remains one of the best cities in which to flip houses ranking 10th among 172 cities compared on such metrics as median purchase price and average remodeling costs.
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The Senate approved a bill this week, and the president signed it, to keep the National Flood Insurance Program operating for 4 more months.
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Young People Don’t Want Construction Jobs…
Disinterest in construction work is contributing to a labor shortage that has meant fewer homes built and rising prices—possibly for years to come.
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What’s Up With Housing?

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Half the mortgage rate gain observed since the start of January has since been erased, according to Zillow.
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But for all the enthusiasm, the tiny-house movement isn’t moving very fast. Financing, zoning laws and entrenched attitudes have conspired to limit tiny houses to a tiny percentage of the nation’s housing stock.
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The Pinellas County housing market hasn’t shown any let down in the year-over-year median sale price and median time to sale for Single Family Homes and Townhome/ Condos. $266,375 in June 2018 versus $248,450 in June 2017
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There are 7 factors that you should consider when choosing your retirement dream home. Evaluating your current house for its ability to adapt with you as you age can be the first step to guaranteeing your comfort in retirement.
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The Top U.S. Migration Pattern? New Yorkers Moving to Florida.
Florida was also the top destination for out-of-state movers from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Illinois, though a handful of Floridians moved to Texas.
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What’s New With Housing?

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Please take action by urging Congress to extend the NFIP and pass meaningful reforms to ensure long-term viability of the program.

 

Freddie Mac: Rates have declined in 5 of past 6 weeks, but a year ago, the average 30-year FRM was 3.96%. Average 15-year FRM slipped to 3.99% this week.
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Whether in a nod to the bold approach of the ’30s or the kitschy flourishes in ’60s design, modern kitchens are finding a fresh new face in the past.
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Apartment renters have come to expect green building features like good indoor air quality and energy efficiency, making them more of a requirement in many markets.
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As a first-time home buyer, where do you even begin? Saving enough cash to cover a down payment is a big enough hurdle to get over, but that’s just the beginning. The entire process can be intimidating and overwhelming. Mortgages, offers and negotiations, inspections, homeowners insurance, property taxes, the list goes on.
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A new report says student loans, high rent, and location preferences are among impediments to Millennial homeownership.
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22 real estate groups and associations – NAR, NAHB, insurers, bankers and others – sent a joint letter to lawmakers pushing them to pass a flood insurance bill.

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What’s Up With Housing?

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Building Permits on the Rise in FloridaFlorida Building Permits Rose 20.8% Year-to-Year.
Home construction continues to lag nationwide, but increases in Fla. and the West are being offset by decreases elsewhere, such as New Hampshire’s 43.1% drop.

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Governor Scott Signs Real Estate-Related Bills Into Law.
New laws will boost flood insurance warnings, tinker with HOA covenant and restriction rules, and change the way Fla. regulates and defines “mortgage lenders.”

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The Pinellas County real estate market is continuing to see higher sale prices and homes moving at a faster rate for both the Single Family and Townhome/Condo markets compared to February 2017.
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As more multifamily developers experiment with modular construction, its use is increasing.
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Did you know that St. Pete offers no-interest loans for qualified first-time home buyers and for qualified homeowners who need help to rehab their houses?
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The premium hikes, which are required by law, will be as little as 2% for some properties and as high as 24% for others. The average increase will be about 8%.


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What’s Up With Housing?

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The National Flood Insurance Program did not expire last Fri. as feared, but Congress extended it for only 2 weeks. Its new expiration date: Dec. 22, 2017.
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Thinking about buying your first home? Before you can unlock the door to homeownership, you have to take some important first steps. From finding the perfect location to financing your purchase, shopping for your first home has challenges that go beyond curb appeal and interior features.
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80% of millennial renters want to buy a home, yet most say they can’t afford it. However, there are ways to get around that problem.
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Some home flipping wisdom for investors who want to make sure they are keeping sharp when it comes to effectively — and profitably — flipping homes.
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Tampa Bay has seen two booms in house flipping – one in the mid-2000s, when prices headed steadily upward, and again from 2011 to 2014 when the market was flooded with cheap foreclosures. But in the three months ended in September, area flippers made an average gross profit of 54.5%, a drop from 66.5% in the same period a year ago.


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Housing News: A Week In Review

Realtors… Please Save This Date: December 12, 2017 – 9:00am to 10:am
Title Security’s Coffee Corner will help you learn how to better navigate the sections of the FR/BAR contract that impact your closings.

The Senate is working on its own legislation so the final outcome remains undetermined.
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Are “smart homes” selling better than their unconnected rivals? Savvy sellers can add smart lighting, doorbell, lock, thermostat and security for about $2,100.
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In his new book, ‘Artemis,’ Andy Weir geeks out on how homes and cities could one day be built on the lunar surface.
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“Rising homeownership rates and limited housing inventory” are two factors driving demand for housing says Robert Dietz with the National Association of Home Builders.
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The 53-acre Water Street Tampa will include two sister residential towers connected by a large commercial space.


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What’s Up With Housing?

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“Convenience is one of the most attractive qualities to Millennials and something real estate developers should keep in mind…”
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NAR says the just-announced tax proposal is “nowhere near as good a deal as the one middle-class homeowners get under current law.” NAHB says it “abandons middle-class taxpayers in favor of high-income Americans and wealthy corporations.”
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Would you live in a shipping container? Check out these inventive recycled container designs.
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Pet owners face unique challenges when buying and selling a home. Not all neighborhoods, houses or condos will love their dog as much as they do.
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If you’re thinking of selling and moving down, waiting might make sense. If you are a first-time buyer or a seller thinking of moving up, waiting probably doesn’t make sense.
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NAR: Before its Dec. 8 expiration date, NFIP will likely be OK’d for another extension to give Congress time to finalize a longer-term revamp of the program.
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