Friday, September 24, 2010

Florida Condo Sales Up In August

Florida’s existing home, condo sales up in August
Existing-home sales move up in August, says NAR
ORLANDO, Fla. – Sept. 23, 2010 – Sales of existing homes in Florida rose 1 percent in August, with a total of 13,997 homes sold statewide compared to 13,908 homes sold in August 2009, according to the latest housing data released by Florida Realtors®. Statewide existing home sales in August increased 3 percent over statewide sales activity in July.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Foreclosures down, but Fla. second nationally
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Sept. 17, 2010 – Foreclosures in Florida fell in August for the fifth straight month, but the state still ranks among those with the highest foreclosure rates in the nation, RealtyTrac reported Thursday.

Florida ranked second behind Nevada in the percentage of housing units receiving foreclosure notices during the month, with one in every 155 homes receiving one – more than twice the national average, according to the Irvine, Calif. company’s monthly survey of the U.S. housing market.

Two Florida metropolitan areas – Cape Coral/Fort Myers (third) and Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach (fifth) – ranked among the top 10 metro areas around the country in terms of the frequency of foreclosures for the month.

Nationally, default notices, auctions and bank repossessions fell 5 percent from August 2009 but were 4 percent higher than in July, a figure RealtyTrac CEO James Saccacio attributed to a convergence of factors including stepped-up bank repossessions and fewer initial default notices.

“On the front end, seriously delinquent loans are rolling into foreclosure at an unusually slow rate, while on the back end, the dammed-up inventory of properties already in foreclosure is moving to (lender ownership) in a steady stream rather than a flood, presumably to prevent further erosion of home prices,” Saccacio said in a statement.

Many states, including Florida, have enacted laws or made voluntary arrangements with lenders to extend the period before which mortgage loans become delinquent in an effort to give homeowners as much help as possible to keep their properties. Sluggish home prices and a glut of inventory on the market, however, continues to put pressure on some mortgage holders who find themselves “upside down,” paying mortgages on property worth significantly less than what they paid for it.

Nationally, Nevada continued to lead all states in the percentage of homes in some state of foreclosure proceedings. One in every 84 housing units in Nevada received a foreclosure notice in August, more than four times the national average. August marked the 44th straight month Nevada held the dubious position, despite a 25 percent drop in foreclosure activity compared to August 2009.

Arizona, California and Idaho rounded out the top five states in the percentage of homes in foreclosure. In terms of sheer numbers, California led the national with 69,143 properties receiving a notice in August. In Florida, 56,877 homes received notices during the same period.

In all, five states – California, Florida, Michigan, Illinois and Arizona – accounted for more than half of the 338,836 homes in the U.S. to fall into default.

Source: News Service of Florida, Michael Peltier

Florida Foreclosures Fall Fifth Straight Month

Foreclosures down, but Fla. second nationally
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Sept. 17, 2010 – Foreclosures in Florida fell in August for the fifth straight month, but the state still ranks among those with the highest foreclosure rates in the nation, RealtyTrac reported Thursday.

Florida ranked second behind Nevada in the percentage of housing units receiving foreclosure notices during the month, with one in every 155 homes receiving one – more than twice the national average, according to the Irvine, Calif. company’s monthly survey of the U.S. housing market.

Two Florida metropolitan areas – Cape Coral/Fort Myers (third) and Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach (fifth) – ranked among the top 10 metro areas around the country in terms of the frequency of foreclosures for the month.

Nationally, default notices, auctions and bank repossessions fell 5 percent from August 2009 but were 4 percent higher than in July, a figure RealtyTrac CEO James Saccacio attributed to a convergence of factors including stepped-up bank repossessions and fewer initial default notices.

“On the front end, seriously delinquent loans are rolling into foreclosure at an unusually slow rate, while on the back end, the dammed-up inventory of properties already in foreclosure is moving to (lender ownership) in a steady stream rather than a flood, presumably to prevent further erosion of home prices,” Saccacio said in a statement.

Many states, including Florida, have enacted laws or made voluntary arrangements with lenders to extend the period before which mortgage loans become delinquent in an effort to give homeowners as much help as possible to keep their properties. Sluggish home prices and a glut of inventory on the market, however, continues to put pressure on some mortgage holders who find themselves “upside down,” paying mortgages on property worth significantly less than what they paid for it.

Nationally, Nevada continued to lead all states in the percentage of homes in some state of foreclosure proceedings. One in every 84 housing units in Nevada received a foreclosure notice in August, more than four times the national average. August marked the 44th straight month Nevada held the dubious position, despite a 25 percent drop in foreclosure activity compared to August 2009.

Arizona, California and Idaho rounded out the top five states in the percentage of homes in foreclosure. In terms of sheer numbers, California led the national with 69,143 properties receiving a notice in August. In Florida, 56,877 homes received notices during the same period.

In all, five states – California, Florida, Michigan, Illinois and Arizona – accounted for more than half of the 338,836 homes in the U.S. to fall into default.

Source: News Service of Florida, Michael Peltier