It’s A Nightmare Across The Board In Florida
The Daily Business Review reports from Florida. “Mami Beach’s Fisher Island, Fort Lauderdale’s exclusive Harborage Island and pricey private enclaves throughout Palm Beach County aren’t normally where you’d think to look for a home in foreclosure. But in the last three months alone, more than 150 notices of pending litigation, or lis pendens were recorded on South Florida properties with an estimated value of more than $1 million, according to data analyzed by the Daily Business Review.”
“Homeowners who built their fortunes in real estate are among those who are hurting the most. Some of the most expensive South Florida houses in foreclosure belong to people in the real estate industry.”
“Al LaSorte, a real estate litigation attorney, is representing local entrepreneur and real estate developer William L. Knight, who has two Highland Beach houses in foreclosure - his primary residence, which he bought for $2.2 million in 2000, and one he built as a spec home several years ago that is still on the market with an asking price of nearly $19 million.”
“‘It is difficult to carry on a mortgage for a spec house for that long,’ LaSorte said.”
The Miami Herald. “Someone had kicked the door in on the foreclosure on the 33rd floor at The Club at Brickell Bay. Last week, Lori Rice, the building’s property manager, pushed it open. Inside, she found the tell-tale signs of a squatter.”
“At a recent meeting at the Brickell, a room full of property managers sat down to commiserate over a slew of other troubles: Impostor landlords leasing units they do not own, a rash of vandalism and burglaries. Investor-owners, desperate to turn a dollar, are even renting to tourists by the day, undercutting local hotels at bargain rates.”
“‘When you come in with luggage, it’s kind of obvious,’ said the outspoken Rice, who admits her building has been hit harder than the rest. ‘They are advertising on Expedia.’”
“Paola Arboleda, manager of the Mark Yacht Club on Brickell Bay, said two months ago residents noticed someone hopping among various vacant units. A little snooping revealed the interloper was a mortgage broker.”
“‘We didn’t know who he was paying or if he was paying,’ Arboleda said. ‘Thank God, he’s gone.’”
“But most squatters aren’t in the units to just hang their hats, said Officer Jeffrey Giordano, who patrols the Brickell area. ‘They are probably involved in prostitution, burglary and other criminal activity,’ Giordano said.”
The Sun Sentinel. “Clementina Marie Giovannetti, a self-published author whose latest book was about her golden retriever, has canceled her ‘best pet lover’ essay contest that began in April. The prize would have been Giovannetti’s $1.25 million Ocala home.”
“Giovannetti said on her Web site that she had halted the competition due to a low response, despite coverage by several television stations and newspapers.”
“While Giovannetti had said her purpose was to ‘bless someone else’s life with this magnificent house,’ others suggested her contest was a creative way to unload an expensive property in a bad housing market. As for the Ocala mansion: It’s back on the market. Price? The original $1.25 million.”
The Orlando Sentinel. “A week after Shaquille O’Neal told the Orlando Sentinel that he’s working on a plan to rescue Central Floridians facing foreclosure, he has learned just how widespread the problem is. ‘He has two or three thousand e-mails,’ said Curtis Cooper, an Orlando Realtor and mortgage broker working with O’Neal on the project.”
“‘There are so many shysters out there who take advantage of you financially and emotionally,” said Belinda Petroccia, who saw her income dip with the tumbling real-estate market and now faces foreclosure on her Wedgefield home in east Orange County. ‘When I saw this, I thought, ‘That’s what I need — maybe Shaq can help.’”
From NBC 2. “The number of foreclosures in Lee County is up 350-percent for the first five months of the year. NBC2 found out why people who can afford to keep their home are also paying the price.”
“Less than a year ago, Lisa Norman bought a condo in the Terraces at Riverwalk. Now her neighbors are becoming scarce and she’s feeling the hit. She just received a $500 bill out of the blue from her homeowner’s association.”
“‘I can’t afford it. It’s not in my budget,’ said Norman.”
“Just a few miles away from Riverwalk at Matera, homeowners just got hit with a $1,500 special assessment. Don Roedding’s company manages about a 150 properties across Southwest Florida.”
“‘It’s a nightmare across the board for everybody,’ said Roedding. ‘Now what you’ve done is taken the same fees and reduced the number of people paying into it. So as much as you don’t want to pay it, if you don’t, you’re hurting yourself that much more if you’re trying to get out of it.’”
“Association fees maintain a community’s curb appeal. But that fact doesn’t make Norman feel any better. ‘It’s not worth it,’ she said. ‘I have my own financial problems to worry about. I can’t, I can’t worry about anybody else.’”
The News Press. “Garage sales have morphed in Southwest Florida from a means to purge the flotsam and jetsam in people’s lives to simply helping them survive. Floyd Harrison of Harrison Auctions in Cape Coral said he’s getting more calls from people who are not necessarily moving away from Southwest Florida, but selling their personal property because of short sales on their homes.”
“Instead of leftover glassware or used DVDs, the items being sold may include family antiques, heirloom jewelry and favorite pieces of furniture. Harrison’s firm had about 45 estate and personal property auctions total in 2007. He’s nearly reached that number in 2008, and May is not over.”
“On May 18, Harrison held a jewelry sale at which a Cape Coral woman sold her $12,000 diamond ring for $2,000. She, her husband and three children are losing their home to a short sale and moving to Tennessee, he said.”
“Others, realizing there is no shame in losing your home despite best efforts to keep it, spoke freely. In Lehigh Acres…Shirley Duttko and her husband were holding a garage sale to sell the contents of their home. They plan to move to Arizona to be near her brother, Shirley said. They’re also leaving behind their house - just walking away.”
“The Duttkos’ home was appraised at more than $300,000. Yet a similar home down the street just sold for $140,000, she said. ‘I couldn’t even sell it for what the second mortgage is for,’ she said. ‘I honestly can’t afford to sell my house.’”
The Herald Tribune. “Evidence of the continued housing slump and slowing commercial real estate market showed up in a big way in the financial statements of Southwest Florida’s community banks during the first quarter. All told, the region’s 17 banks lost $15 million during the first three months of 2008.”
“The banks also reported $188 million in noncurrent loans during the first quarter, a 361 percent increase from the $40.8 million in problem loans they reported last year.”
“‘It’s tough out there now,’ said Tramm Hudson, a longtime Southwest Florida banker. ‘Based on conversations with bankers around the state, this situation is probably going to last until well into 2009, if not 2010.’”
The Tampa Tribune. “It was supposed to be the shining example of downtown Tampa’s revitalization. A luxury condominium with a name recognizable around the globe. On Tuesday, the developer of proposed 52-story Trump Tower Tampa joined three other condo projects mired in bankruptcy. The filing is yet another sign the waterfront Trump Tower Tampa may never see light of day.’
“Court documents list SimDag’s debts between $10 million and $50 million. It estimates more than 200 creditors, including scores of buyers who plunked down 20 percent deposits on condos sold for up to $6.5 million.”
“The property is prime waterfront land, but selling it in today’s market could be tough. SimDag paid $16 million for the property in 2004. Patrick Berman, senior director for Cushman & Wakefield in Tampa, said recently that the property would likely fetch only $10 million to $12 million in today’s market, even though developers may have invested as much as $25 million in infrastructure on the site.”
“Trump told The Tampa Tribune on Wednesday that he is disappointed SimDag filed for bankruptcy and still wishes his name was on a condominium in Tampa. He said he expects the land eventually to be sold at auction. If that happens, he said, he would like to bid on it and build a Trump Tower himself.”
“‘It’s a real shame it has come to this,’ he said.”
“The condos were originally priced between $700,000 and $6.5 million. Half of buyers’ 20 percent deposits were put into escrow so they could be returned. The rest was turned over to SimDag and used for site preparation.
Several buyers have sued, trying to get their money back. Developers have given some buyers half of their deposits. Tampa buyer Joyce Williams said she got back half of her $129,000 deposit and is ‘devastated’ SimDag has filed for bankruptcy reorganization. She doubts she will ever see the rest of her money.”
“‘This has been a nightmare,’ said Williams. ‘I can’t afford to lose that kind of money. I have a kid in college. This was my retirement money.’”
“Swimmers will have the option of wearing nothing at all at the Arbors at Branch Creek, a complex of 390 homes that landed on the idea to help move units in a down market. One pool is being set aside for nude swimmers, sunbathers and hot-tub users, said Christine Pirkle, director of sales with Eden condominiums, the project’s developer.”
“It will be several months before the nudity rules are put in place, Pirkle said. Landscaping is needed to keep out prying eyes, for one thing, plus condo owners must approve. But there are few owners among all the renters; developers hold a number of units.”
“Eden purchased the property three years ago with a condo conversion plan in mind. Then, said Pirkle, ‘The market went in the toilet and nothing was selling.’”
“Eden came up with a new strategy, ‘to set us apart from the thousands of other condos out there,’ she said.”
“Rumors spread that the whole complex was going clothing optional, sparked by a provocative posting under Lifestyle in the developer’s online promotional material.”
“‘You’re going to be very comfortable with our dress code,’ it says. ‘Our residents are welcome to shed more than their inhibitions as they enter the gates of Eden. Because when our residents come home after a busy day in the working world, they want to completely unburden themselves, shed the trappings of the outside world … and be totally free.’”
“That’s not true, Pirkle said, and the language is being tweaked.”
“Some residents of the complex were unaware of the plans. ‘I think that’s something they should probably … let us know,’ said Justin Gralnick.”
The NWF Daily News. “Home foreclosures continue to soar on the Emerald Coast and stymie the overall real estate market. In May, Okaloosa County recorded 164 home foreclosures. That is nearly three times the number of foreclosures recorded during the same month in 2007.”
“Walton County recorded 158 foreclosures in May - nearly four times as many as were booked in May of last year. If June follows a similar trend, both counties could surpass in the first half of 2008 the total number of foreclosures in all of 2007.”
“Santa Rosa County registered 112 foreclosures in May - a 45 percent increase over the same month last year. ‘Pretty eye-opening numbers,’ said Don Howard, Okaloosa County’s clerk of the circuit court.”
“Experts say the main cause of the spike in foreclosures is that many people purchased second homes or condos when real estate was booming with the intention of reselling them quickly for a profit.”
“But when real estate sales slowed, those investors were often stuck making an additional mortgage payment with no buyers in sight. Those who could not afford it now face foreclosure.”
“‘Frenzy is probably the best word,’ said Cliff Chaplin from the Emerald Coast Association of Realtors as he describes the boom.”
“‘I’ve told people real estate isn’t like day trading (on the stock market), and people were treating it that way,’ he said. ‘Some of those properties would be sold two or three times before they were even built.’”
“Economist Rick Harper, director of the University of West Florida’s Haas Center for Business Research and Economic Development, agreed. ‘The condo market is in a lot more pain,’ Harper said. ‘And I think they’re overshooting on price, so those will actually fall below normal.’”
My wife wants to purchase a different dining room set. We’re waiting. Looks like we could buy it now if we were in Florida, however.
WT,
Why be such a killjoy! C’mon you still know how to show her a good time. Just make it a “garage-sale vacation” in the Sunshine State! Of course the upscale pitch would be “Estate Sale Touring”.
Yeah, maybe Shaq has a few trillion dollars lying around somewhere.
Maybe he can help.
I laughed my bum off when I read that. Shaq? Huh?
The tone of her wistful prayer what what made me laugh hardest.
Yes, Shaq has joined the lists of the mighty, someone who ‘might help’: Sweet Baby Jeebus, St. Joseph, Hanuman the Giant Magic Monkey, Thor, Ra…and now, you can pray to Shaq as well!
He has a self serving motive - his plan was to go into the mortgage business. Buy the FBs’ mortgages, and refi them into a better rate.
So not exactly motivated by a charitable impulse.
Think Mr. Potter, NBA style.
‘So not exactly motivated by a charitable impulse.’
Well, neither are Sweet Baby Jeebus, St. Joseph, Hanuman…etc.
At least not according to the modern, human interpreters of their divine will. I’ve never heard any ‘prophet’ tell their followers ‘Send the church no money, ya hear?’ I well recall my devout mormon mom piously sending in 10% of what meager pittance she had, even while half the kids didn’t have winter shoes.
Heck, probably even Hanuman demands bananas.*
*I may very well be wrong. I am not an acolyte of Hanuman. But you know what? I am very sure He demands SOMETHING.
If I was Him, I’d make it be Cheetos.
If you’ve visited Indian temples, say even for archaelogical reasons, the non-human followers of Hanuman, the marauding monkeys need bribes.
They will harass you until you fork out apples, oranges, bananas.
There is no getting away from the “forking out” process.
Bill Clinton would be even more wealthy than he is now if he had started a megachurch. What a spellbinder!
Spellbinding to you, maybe. To me he’s always been a sleazy fraud.
The final word on my cousin the 10th-grade dropout, rehab-flipper with the condo in Jupiter (Palm Beach County). The knife-catcher who recently agreed to buy the Jupiter condo, for maybe 30% off peak price, has now actually paid the money (the 20% down), and the bank paid most of the rest; my cousin had to take a second mtg to make the deal go through, but the 2nd was less than 5% of the sale price, so any amt he gets back is OK. I have congratulated him over and over again on being Out of Florida RE. He still has a too-big house in PA, but that’s another story.
I’m curious as this has been coming up more and more; was the second he took to satisfy a previous second lien holder?
if i recall it was due to a lender’s 80% LTV limit.. it appraised too low, and the offer stipulated that if financing couldnt be obtained, the deal was off.
But “financing” doesn’t necesarily mean bank financing. The seller offered the 2nd (for 15k ?) and covered the missing LTV, so the deal went through.
lmao. shaking head.
ahem.. Since it apparantly needs further clarification for some people, the 2nd popped up when the home appraised lower than 80% of the offer.
for example:
Buyer offered 100K to the seller, 20% down. Needs an 80K loan.
But the bank says the home aint worth 100K.. it’s worth only 90K and it’ll lend 80% of that, or $72K.
There’s a 8K shortage.. (80-72=8)
The buyer tries to back out using the contingent on financing clause in the offer.
Seller could just drop the asking price to 90K and take the $10K hit, but has an idea.. Financing is financing and why not give the buyer a 2nd for $8K.
Buyer accepts and is happy.. he’s getting the home for what he originally offered to pay (100K) .
Bank is happy. It loaned 80% LTV on it’s $90K appraisal.
Seller is happy for the time being.. although he’s stuck himself with a (same interest as the 1st, btw) $8k 2nd that may or may not perform.
Instant (negative) equity!
We went to FL on vacation to visit family. Turns out our aunt and cousin both have too much exposure to FL real estate. Our cousin is trying sell and cut his losses, but our real estate agent aunt is still on the kool aid.
“Homeowners who built their fortunes in real estate are among those who are hurting the most. Some of the most expensive South Florida houses in foreclosure belong to people in the real estate industry.”
OMG, the Schadenfreude Meter just emitted a loud pop and now it’s smoking! Talk about overload.
They always keep going back for “one more hit”.
They never know when to walk away from the scene.
They always keep going back for “one more hit”.
——————————————————
that next “hit” is always the best one.
If they “built their fortunes” then they could easily ride this out. What they built was a hypothetical fortune. I wish one journalist could get this right.
Awww. Where can I send a donation to ease their pain?
I spent time driving through south Hillsborough County (Fl) and east Manatee County (Fl) subdivisions last weekend. Guess what?
Builders are STILL BUILDING! It seems insane to see new homes coming out of the ground in neighborhoods where there are obvious vacant and foreclosed homes. I just don’t get it.
Established filled out neighborhoods (pre 2000 builds) seem relatively unscathed. Of course these neighbor hoods have homes that actually look different from the one next door or on the next street. It seems as if every subdivision in Florida built since 2000-2001 has about eight basic floor plans (I mean total among all of them).
It is basic supply and demand that they will continue to build as long as prices provide an incentive. The only thing that can stop them is lower prices.
Ben, I’m not sure what you mean. Are you saying there IS demand at the builders’ current pricing?
Bill,
I don’t know where the demand is coming from, but Minto is still dreaming $314,900 to $599,900 in their development in Royal Palm Beach. They claim brisk sales, but I was in the sales office last weekend and the place was a ghost town.
Well, obviously as the builders are still reporting sales. There are people out there that have no idea what is going on.
That said, I’ve posted plenty of reports where Centex or somebody is making FBs left and right in their own subdivisions, undercutting their own buyers. And there are people who see a $100k cut and bite. It doesn’t mean prices won’t fall another $100k (or more) before it’s all said and done.
Builder has two options once the go is given:
Option 1: Cancel construction, eat land fees, eat fees from sub-contractors and material deliveries, and somehow either pay home office staff or start cutting staff.
Option 2: Build it at a loss.
On its own, Option 2 stinks and most people probably think there is no way a builder will take it. But a closer look says the following:
Assume that the builder is planning on a $300k house. Profit is $20k, land costs are $20k, and materials/contracts/labor/home office overhead eat the rest.
To cancel costs $40k. They’re out cold - nothing to show, and the home office people are out of a job.
To build, they can cut the profit to nothing and sell for $280k and they’re out nothing. Or, they can even cut to $250k, and they’re still $10k ahead of not building - and they keep the home office employed, keep their subs and suppliers happy, and they’re still in business earning a paycheck. No profit at all, but they’re ahead of option 1.
So of course they’ll take option 2 - build and sell at a paper loss, but less of a paper loss than not building at all.
Bad Chile - I saw exactly that happen here in Florida in the late ’70s or early ’80s. For non-national builders in particular, if you don’t keep your good subs fed, they might not be there when business comes back.
The big builders are reporting losses due to write downs, not so much a lack of profit on the sale of houses. Prices are still too high. They are still building thousands of units in the hardest hit parts of Florida.
Beazer Homes just ran an ad on radio here in
Tampa. Weekend sale. Save $50,000.
Homes going in the low $100,000’s.
Yes, there is a market for that. This is my range, but I am still looking for better locations and am in no hurry.
It’s the Homes in the 300,000’s that there isn’t a market for. There were a lot of those going up around here during the free money financing craze of the early 2000’s.
You can still get free money, but there are a few strings now.
We need a lot more bank failures to put housing prices back to where they belong.
Who are all these white trash people “buying” million dollar properties? Trump Towers, Tampa, lured a lot of them. But, “investing” ones retirement money in a mania and then complaining when the developers go bankrupt is beyond ludicrous. And no, Trump will not buy the land and build on it. Nobody in his right might wants to live in downtown Tampa.
The worldwide destruction of nice neighborhoods with the mass arrivals of the Beverly Hillbillies whose ships temporarily came in before sinking should make for many funny future novels. You should see the Almost Mini-Me who built–and is now living in–an “investment” McMansion on my former street in Hyde Park. It’s only a few months old, and already looks like a collapsing Taco Bell (which may be an improvement). It’s arguably the ugliest house in a two-mile radius, and for each of those miles he wants a million bucks (ha-ha-ha-ha).
This week, he finally got some unfortunate Mexican to yank weeds that had taken over the postage stamp yard. Evidently, the Upwardly and/or Downwardly mobile can’t be bothered with yanking their own:)
RE: It’s arguably the ugliest house in a two-mile radius
I’ve noticed this circumstance a lot when viewing the local real estate listings.
I’d say the majority of the one-off McMansions, are butt-ugly
with virtually zero curb appeal. Roof pitches don’t match-gables are stuck on wherever- Window placement lacks conformity. It like the things were designed by some idiot on hallucinatory drugs.
It’s one thing to be stuck with a $40k SUV pig-mobile you can’t unload. Quite another to be stuck for life with a million dollar plus dead albatross around your neck if you ain’t got the ballz to walk.
Trump, who I doubt has been to this town more than twice in the last three years, claims in the article that he still has designs on owning a Tampa condominium tower. That piece of land is downtown, but it overlooks the Crosstown Expressway and an overpass and fronts several office buildings. It never again will command a premium.
The south Tampa McMansion craze, which has not stopped, is rapidly becoming one of my biggest pet peeves. Do you really need to construct your own personal Versailles next to everybody else’s 3/2?
I’m an Architect in DC and a few years ago (on a trip to florida actually LOL) I started photographing the hidieous crap I saw being built there. Since then I have put together a little folder full of these Mc-Monstrosities (with attached notes) and when I want a laugh and have some free time I go in and start to annotate the captions on them. One of these days I want to publish a nice glossy coffee table book called “Notes From a Bubble” The Best of The Worst of North American Residential Architecture” If you have any pics you want featured please send them to mbroderick@wdgarch.com.
clothing “optional” to increase cash flow. No different then hiring some model types to hang out and dance in a night club to keep the guys money flowing.
Clothing optional would not drive me to buy into a neighborhood, in fact just the opposite. I can’t imagine my values are too far off from the typical buyer.
But But But Andy…You are not the buyer they are looking for. They want a young free uninhibited buyer to enjoy the scenery.
Or maybe some old geezers with buckets full of money to spend on the naked honeys…..eg please pay my rent and HOA fees….would you ya…cutie pie!!
Young and free…well except for the overpriced home and the 50 something nude people who really shouldn’t be nude at that pool…This will blow up on anyone who buys in.
There’s a colony for people like this just down the road from me. Most of them are 40’s, 50’s, even 60’s and beyond…and most you’d rather not see nude.
No kidding. Just what I’d want to experience, 50 fat hairy asses hanging around my pool waiting around for the chance to see some mythical young beauty parading her chihuahua in front of them. For pete’s sake, go to a titty bar and save the downpayment for a real place to live.
“parading her chihuahua in front of them”
man, I’m so out of touch with all these new euphemisms
“her chihuahua” — is that what they call it now?
Any dog that barks and backs up at the same time, ain’t much of one.
I used to have a miniature long-haired dachsie/part chihuahua and I watched him on many occasions chase dogs many times his size, one time 2 St. Barnyards, whoops, Bernards (flippin keyboard) - must’ve been the dachsie in him.
“parading her chihuahua in front of them”
Well then, don’t know if you remember the one about the lady who went into the drugstore to buy linament for her Schnauzer.
Of course, not everyone has heard the rendition by Primus of “Wynona’s Big Brown Beaver”, but I’m not going to get into that.
I’m used to these references being feline in nature… One more thing in this country going to the dogs, I guess
But but but they may try to appeal to “Foreigners”.
while screening out Muslims
These assholes STILL don’t get it. I’m not a prude and categorically reject the “family values” lie but these morons think I’m going to part with money to subject myself to a community of saggy asses parading around as “free spirited”? These developers/builders/realtards still haven’t wrapped their empty skulls around the fact that working families is their next and last customer.
preach it, Ex!
Man, the next thing you know you’ll be going off about all them smelly hippies. The dark side beckons… resistance is futile…
Gotta go, time for my weekly shower.
Plus when one considers that 99% of the population does NOT look good naked, this could be a disincentive.
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“It’s A Nightmare Across The Board In Florida”
After a steady decline of 25% Annual Rate since July 2007, Phoenix and Miami are leading the decline for the past two months at 35-40% Annual Rate. Bubbles are bursting as some of us have expected.
Jas
Jas - around here (central Florida) it feels to me like we are moving quite quickly from denial to panic. Can’t remember if there is supposed to be anything in between.
And I guess they want us to feel sorry for those that invested their “fortunes” into real estate…give me a break..
These “fake” millionaires invested the banks money into real estate..the money came from the constant refi cash out game..it was OPM(Other People’s Money)…
So you took a risk and put yourself into a McMillion House when you never belonged there in the first place by taking out a exotic loan..and you want me to feel “bad” for the joneses wannabe…Well you can always tell your grandkids that at one time “we faked living in a million dollar home”..
I love how the daily business review talks about how these homes are “valued” at a million dollars or more..according to what year data?…the MLS in South Florida is LOADED with once McMillion Mansions that were 1 point something that are now listed as short sales for 600K..and still no bites..
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We are a nation of speculators. Land speculation far preceded stock speculation. George Washington was probably the most successful land speculator in US history and Madison (or was it Monroe?) was heavily into it but I don’t know how he fared. Florida has a special place in land speculation in US since early 1900s (earlier it used to be Kentucky, parts of old Virginia, Ohio territories, Illinois, etc.; land was there for the taking).
Making money via speculation is very enticing. Right, Chick?
Jas
Andrew Jackson and Thomas Jefferson were the real masters at property acquisition. Unlike modern RE warriors, most early Americans were generous, gregarious, and even somewhat ascetic by nature, Jackson particularly.
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Jackson I know (he was big in land grabbing from Indians, Mexico, etc.), but Jefferson? Jefferson was in debt all his life. I thought that his estate was inherited by his wife and him.
Jas
But he copped all of the Northwest for a song, quite brilliantly, and then engineered a beautiful and thoughtful exploration. And he inherited a big national debt in 1800 and left the country debt-free in 1808. Jefferson goes through periods of being loved then loathed and currently he is in one of those periods where it’s trendy to trash him.
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Paul,
I get you now. Jefferson did it for the country! He thought that widespread land ownership would be great for the freedom of the citizens (white, of course, at the time). The process continued all the way to acquiring California. By 1850, the foundations for the future empire (with huge land mass) were fully led.
Jas
Jefferson wisely saw that having a large country that extended ocean to ocean was essential to the growth of the U.S. and would help protect it from Spain, France, and Britain. His vision benefited the entire world, Sacajawea included. Not sure whether you don’t know history or just hate the country.
Just remember BANKS HAVE NO MONEY of their own. When you talk about using the bank’s money you’re really talking about the money trusted to the banks by the depositors.
This whole thing was one huge con game and the banks were part of the scam.
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Yes, lending can easily be turned into a scam. And our “banks” did. Some of them just called themselves mortgage companies and not banks to skirt the laws. It was so easy to skirt the laws. Someone powerful might have wanted to let the “reckless mortgage lending” flourish.
Property crimes flourish under bad governments!
Jas
Well here we go again!
Now we’re doing the perp walk just like we did ( As Gasparino notes ) for Henry Blodgett, Mary Meaker, Abbey Joseph-Cohen etc. So now the FBI and DOJ are doing a round up. But just like the Dot.Com Crash ALL of this occurs after the fact.
So I guess we had a bad government leading up to the Tech Wreck?
I hear up to 300 arrests as we speak?
Just because certain businesses, such as banking, are highly leveraged, doesn’t mean they have no money, i.e., zero net worth. Although some banks would undoubtedly have negative net worth under tougher accounting standards, it is absurd to shout that banks have no money, and only undermines reasoned argument.
In a fractional reserve system, all banks have negative worth.
They are the unique entities to which conventional accounting standards don’t apply.
Today the banks are in trouble because of bad loans. But, the next salvo aimed at banks is inflation and interest rates. The banks make most of their income by borrowing money at the short term interest rates and loan the money at the long term interest rates. The banks make money on the difference between the short term rates and the long term rates.
What happens when the the central banks decide that inflation must be tamed? Short term rates will increase. If the central banks delay this taming of inflation, the problem only gets bigger and the cost increases. To tame inflation today the central banks need to increase short term rates 4%. If they delay this 1 year they will need an 8% increase to tame inflation.
Do you realize what will happen to the banks if short term rates increased 8%? This on top of non performing loans will kill most banks.
So, does anybody still wonder how “Ghost Towns” occur?
“The market went in the toilet”
No my friend, PEOPLE went in the toilet!
Squatters, prostitution, drug dealing, imposter landlords and then there’s the lowest of the low… pet essay promoters!
Sorry for being so flippant but I think we all get a little tired of hearing these off-handed explanations about “the market” going to hell in a handbasket. The “market” is people and “people” are the market.
Someone needs to just throw a big circus tent around the entire state of FLA. and charge admission.
Didn’t Barnum and Bailey start in Sarasota?
Yes, along with Ringling. And Florida is where they hung out every winter.
Exactly. If ‘everyone’ thinks… they’re a good driver or “have a good sense of humor” why can’t we further assume that it’s “other people” that have tanked “the market”?
Isn’t saying “the market” just another way of saying “somebody else” did this or “other people” ( but not me ) is accountable for this mess? I understand bubble bloggers saying, “Hey, don’t look at me!” but often times these “market” comments are coming from direct participants in same said market.
Bill - that reminds me of the time, a couple of decades before Disney, when a lot of winter circus people wintered in an area just outside Taft, south of Orlando. “Strates Shows” or something like that. It was way south on the continuation of Orange Avenue, what we called the back road to Kissimmee, somewhere near Landstreet Road. I think the menagerie included railroad cars - it was colorful and sparked the imagination. It was always fun to ride by there and think about the circus, though such living must have been a pretty basic experience for the performers.
Heck, circus education is alive and well in the our state. Right here in the capital, the State of Florida funds the Florida State University Flying High Circus. FSU even offers courses on “Circus Activities.”
I’m not kidding:
http://circus.fsu.edu/
“pet essay promoters!”
Add it to the insult stash!
Pet essay promoter!
Ummm…uhhhhh…
I don’t know how to respond to this one.
So…they have taken to cornering the Nudist crowd.
Wow………………Just wow:)
..
Sounds so cool, in 2010 maybe I can score a forclosure there at .10 on the dollar. I’d have to have the pool view, of course.
Florida is America’s Wang
“Florida is America’s Wang”
Someone pointed out how Florida’s standard license plate with the state outline and two oranges look remarkably like a guy’s complete set of equipment. I’ve heard of blue ba11s, but orange?
They’re shaved and tanned.
or Mozilo’s, waxed?
I know how to respond…….I’m laughing myself silly. What the heck has gotten into people??
The head shaking while reading this thread rivals some of the better Cali ones.
Heh. I love this state! This could be the setting for a Hiassen novel.
I love FLA also, I hope my posts are not being construed as a dissing of the Sunshine State.
Have enjoyed many happy moments within the confines of your great
wang’sstate’s borders.Hahaha. Most people look way better with their clothes on than off (at least I’d suspect that from the few I’ve seen nekked).
I mean, there’s a reason God gave us clothes, right? Geez. And think of the poor suckers who already bought, not knowing this was coming down the pike, and now they can’t sell. Puts a whole new face on the inlaws visiting.
I have to agree that less than 5% of the poplutation looks better naked. In some areas we are talking 1% or less.
Is that a stat garnered from person research and then extrapolated?
person = personal
It is a guesstimate. I wouldnt want to have to do a random sampling unless I picked the location.
I think a nudist colony would be more suited for Intercourse, Pa.
Why not Beaver?
On the rare occasion that I have found myself on a nude beach, I did make a mental note to self:
Bring bathrobes next time for distribution to select sunbathers
Too bad we can’t be 18 years old forever
sounds like you were on the same beach!
(BTW, which one were you?)
“Most people look way better with their clothes on than off (at least I’d suspect that from the few I’ve seen nekked).”
Well, I guess we HAVE met.
“Miami Beach’s Fisher Island, Fort Lauderdale’s exclusive Harborage Island and pricey private enclaves throughout Palm Beach County aren’t normally where you’d think to look for a home in foreclosure. But in the last three months alone, more than 150 notices of pending litigation, or lis pendens were recorded on South Florida properties with an estimated value of more than $1 million, according to data analyzed by the Daily Business Review.”
It really wasnt so long ago that you could buy an entire hotel in South Beach for a million dollars. A million dollars was the going price of a Palm Beach Mansion, and their owners chuckled because they had picked them up in the 1970s for $50,000 and restored them. The only people who bought in Fischer Island were politicians, druggies, and hollywood types that needed privacy at any price.
1st the reports of std outbreaks among Florida retirees, mirroring the housing bubble, now this. If you’ve ever seen the average Florida resident in Wrinkle City you’ll know why I want the barf bag concession at that pool.
Reading all that stuff about Florida: Oh, yeah. We’re near the bottom. NOT! Try 2011 to 2015. Reasons: If you follow the business news, you will see we are only in the first phase of an economic downturn. A BAD one. Rumor has it that July thru November is going to get very nasty in the financial world.
It isn’t rumor to know that there are BIG problems in most of the more affluent states (like here in California) which bring in most of the money. I know a lot of people do not appreciate California (for instance) but it’s states like California and New York which bring in the big bucks. They are now in trouble. From public employee pensions (too generous in the past) to a decline in tax revenues to inflation (anyone who thinks true inflation is running at Bernanke’s voodoo economics 2% is a total idiot and I’ve noticed there are one or two idiots on this board).
Throw in gas prices (even if the cost drops to $100 a barrel) and it’s a disaster. Still, the Bush Crime Family, The Cheney Crime family, DeLay’s, etc, etc,and the Wall Street crime families have topped up their already massive bank accounts so they are going to be okay for the next 4 to 8 years. You on the other hand…..
Bottom line: If you are thinking of buying property DO NOT! The UK property market is looking very nasty at the moment. If they crash (some are predicting a crash) or prices drop dramatically, the psychological impact in other countries will add to the misery.
Frankly, it would not surprise me to see property values fall to pre-1998 levels. I’ve revised that from 2000 levels because of the serious state of the financial credit markets. There are more big mortgage re-sets due in 2009 which will bring another flood of defaults onto the market.
Many of those re-sets are for higher end properties with mortgages taken out by people who had stronger credit. Those who could actually fog a mirror. But, when many home owners find their house is only valued at 50% of the original price and they are paying the mortgage on a 100% valuation THEY WILL WALK). Crap always flows downhill. That means as those high end prices drop, the next level down drops.
DO NOT get suckered into dead cat bounces or by listening to the b.s put out by the NAR or your local realtorwhore - unless you can get the realtorwhore to include a clause in the contract which states he/she will buy back the property if it drops more than 5% in the next 2 years.
BTW, a contract is a contract. You can ask to put in whatever you want so don’t fall for any of the, “You can’t put that in a contract.” I’ve dealt with contracts for 50 years. You can whatever you want in a contract. Even, “Once we’ve both signed you have to kiss my ass.” One thing I WILL guarantee. A realtorwhore, even though they tell you, “Now is a great time to buy,” will NOT agree to a clause like that…..even if he/she like the look of your ass.
“Once we’ve both signed you have to kiss my ass.”
That for sure goes into the next contract I sign, especially if I take the job I’m looking at and sign an employment contract. Yup, gonna make my boss sign that one.
(He’s a paleontologist, so he’d probably sign it and laugh HIS ass off, those guys are pretty crazy, digging old bones does that to one.)
Lost, I thought you would be over in Hanksville checking out the new dino bone discovery at the quarry that I read about in the news.
Hey, I left you a comment on that yesterday. Like I said, it’s BIG (sauropods). Quite the deal. I bet old Reo Hunt would be laughing his ass off if he were still around, he’d probably already pillaged and looted the site by about 1950. They said all the surface stuff was pretty much gone, but lots and lots in the dirt. You think it will have an effect on Hanksville? The Cleveland-Lloyd Quarry hasn’t been that big of a draw for Price, IMO.
CLDQ is pretty small, and far off the beaten path. Neat place, though. I should know, I did some (not all) of the solar work for their big facility upgrade that was finished last year. These sites just aren’t a big attraction if there’s not a lot of other of the standard touristy stuff around. Probably just as well, limits some of the pillaging that would go on otherwise.
Guess we’re wandering rather far OT here… Ben seems to be pretty gracious about it with the regulars, though
Yeah, thanks, Ben, for your infinite (I hope) patience.
Mike:
I really think all of you have underestimated the impact of all the non smoking campaigns. Its adds years to the life of people and means far more money taken from pensions that were not desgined for so many people living this long
we must eliminate all 20 years and out even the military….30 years in minimum for full benefits or a much higher weekly deduction from your paycheck to cover the earlier retirements.
Civil Service Unions are next on the chopping block…
—————-
but it’s states like California and New York which bring in the big bucks. They are now in trouble. From public employee pensions (too generous in the past)
aNYCdj,
I agree, and I’ve been one of the biggest boosters of that position. Here in Oregon getting a State job was basically hitting the lottery. Clearly unsustainable.
Yet the military is different. Sure some of the benefits other gov. employees are there but for the most part the dollars aren’t. I have plenty of friends that were in for 22, 24 and even 26 years that don’t even clear $1,500 a month in ret. pay.
What I would prefer to see is the way the Aussies and Kiwi’s do it, simply have single sailors or marines for 12 years and then they are still young enough to re-engage with the mainstream economy. I’ve always suspected they did this due to a limited supply of able-bodied males.
DinOR:
I am always in a quandry about the military. Sure they now volunteer, but its the combination of benifits that seem to add up to TOO MUCH
My Landlord served in Korea then NYC civil service for 30 years, and then SS and rental income….all in all he is doing fine.
So when does all this stop? My LL retired at 55…in 1987 is this right or even FAIR to then next generation in line?
Another DJ Friend is 20 year military then got a job as assistant head of security at a NYC City College ….again on the public payroll……
Its the double and triple dipping on the public payroll that has people like me very worried. Who is going to pay for all of this? I know my friend would not be happy with pay cut even if we are in serious recession and maybe his paychecks could bounce.
If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. Sign up. The Marines (and the other branches) are always looking for a few good men.
Right on, Bill !! there is always a lot of whining about pensions here. Guess what? That’s a choice everyone makes when they join the workforce. It’s never too late.
I learned a few things when researching squatting as my next possible career.
When I was a kid someone told me that hobos had signs they’d draw on the curb (or whatever was handy) indicating a good place for a free meal (usually some nice farm woman).
Now there’s an international symbol for squatter’s digs, it’s a circle with a jagged arrow going through it pointing to the house/building available for squatting. I read it was quite common in Great B. where squatting’s legal. May become more common in places like FL.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Squatting
yeah, but check out the wiki entry for squatting (pastoral), quite the squatttocracy.
Only 186 shopping days til xmas…
Twas the nightmare before foreclosure, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse
The stalking was done by a sheriff with care
In hopes that the FB was no longer there
“Homeowners who built their fortunes in real estate are among those who are hurting the most. Some of the most expensive South Florida houses in foreclosure belong to people in the real estate industry.”
Are the days of leveraging with OPM now over? Man, I got sick of hearing that OPM thing. Just where are the OP now? BK?
BTW, Lost - thanks for your, “Hope you are okay,” posting the other day after my trips to the ER. It’s a bit O.T but the following information might help some people/kids who are having asthma/allergy problems.
I saw a top specialist and had a battery of tests. Simply put, about 70% to 80% of allergic reactions which trigger asthma attacks are from 2 different types of dust mites. The other 20% is from mold spores, food, etc. One European and one American. I got hit badly (thought I was toast) because other stuff (pollen) made the dust mites worse. As he said, “The pollen is the icing on the cake but the cake is dust mites.”
I’ve been doing research on the web. If you or your kids are asthmatic, you have to get allergy covers for the mattress, pillows, etc. Dust mites are related to spiders and ticks (much smaller) and are VERY hard to kill. They love humidity but die if humidity drops below 50%. They like beds because of human body moisture. Cloth upholstery, carpets, wool blankets are their favorite breeding grounds. Even if you are house proud it makes no difference. They live off the dead skin of humans and animals and we slough off masses of dead skin every day.
When washing sheets, pillow cases, water has to be VERY HOT or they survive. They die in direct sunlight. They breed in curtains. “Dust” has nothing to do with it. A “dusty shelf” for instance is not important. They get more food (dead skin) on the carpets, etc. Cleaning out air-ducts is a waste of time so foget those flyers which urge you to have your air-ducts cleaned. Air filters are a waste of time because they live on the floor, upholstery, beds, etc. They don’t fly. Plush toys for kids are OUT. A dust mite breeding ground.
Sorry to O.T this but if anyone has asthma or have kids who have asthma, they will know what it feels like and I’ve had it for 55 years.
Mike, glad you’re OK.
“They love humidity but die if humidity drops below 50%.”
This is good news, as Utah has very very low humidity. Ever considered moving to the desert? Might be a life-saver, literally. Best wishes.
‘This is good news, as Utah has very very low humidity.’
It sure does! Wow. I remember 5 years ago trying earnestly to grow oyster mushrooms and then the minute they’d pop up out of their substrate…schwip. They’d shrivel to little gnarled stick thingies. It was discouraging.
Now, of course, I live in Mushroom Heaven. In fact, I woke up one day a few months ago during the rainy season and as I stood groggily in front of the bathroom mirror I was startled to see something peeping from behind my ear. I bent close to the mirror to see, and… it was a tiny mushroom! My goodness. I finally gathered up my courage and gingerly plucked it. Just a small twinge, didn’t hurt much at all, and I had it in my hand.
I was going to bring it to the doctor, but instead I ate it on my salad at lunchtime. Delicious.
Oly, is this the true meaning of self-sustaining?
Why, maybe so! But I’d need to grow more. Maybe next year I’ll get a larger crop.
Hey Oly, better get over to the Bits Bucket, Ouro’s having a touch of whatever that German word was, waltz..whatever…
Oh, dear, another ‘Weltschmerz’ attack. Poor ouro.
Well, that’s what comes of flaunting your treasures to truck-drivers. *disapproving sniff* By following her well-meaning but likely misapplied philanthropic impulse she probably caused some poor distracted truck-driver to go right off the road and into a billboard and now she feels guilty.
BWHAHAHA!!! Hope it was the guy I met yesterday…hey, Ouro, if it was, good on ya, as they say (somewhere).
‘I couldn’t even sell it for what the second mortgage is for,’ she said. ‘I honestly can’t afford to sell my house.’
That’s either one hefty second mortgage, and/or the price declines have been massive.
“‘I’ve told people real estate isn’t like day trading (on the stock market), and people were treating it that way,’ he said. ‘Some of those properties would be sold two or three times before they were even built.’”
“Economist Rick Harper, director of the University of West Florida’s Haas Center for Business Research and Economic Development, agreed. ‘The condo market is in a lot more pain,’ Harper said. ‘And I think they’re overshooting on price, so those will actually fall below normal.’”
In other news, water is wet, snow is cold, and the sun rises in the east. I like how they are gradually figuring out that the market will undershoot - no more of the “slight drop and back to the absurd price increases!” mantra!
I searched Amazon for books by Clementina (Clementine) Marie Giovannetti, the “author” who tried to “give” away her house in an essay contest. Found three books, ranked at approximately 2,500,000th, 3,500,000th and 3,600,000th in sales. One had “The Best Selling Guide To…” as part of the title, not as a testimonial! Pretty shrewd.
Oh, and the essay contest in which there had to be enough fee-paying entrants to pay the selling price of her house - that’s so inspiring! Bet a few squirrel-feeders jumped all over that one.
I hope the I.R.S. read that article. Anyone here have a relative in the I.R.S. or Florida licensing/taxing offices? Is it possible, maybe, that the “contest” was really a lottery? Don’t you have to have licenses in advance to run a lottery and don’t those have to be posted in a way that an average person is going to know it is a lottery? I don’t know, mind you - just askin’.
I must need a course at Search Engine School. I mean, just look at this link:
http://www.wayodd.com/dog/1/c/15/
Says she is a “famous author,” a “generous donor” (relative to the house “giveaway,” and “has several bestsellers.” How can I be missing the hits, then?
She’s a self-important promoter. No problem with your search engines. The one thing that I have realized in 20 years of dealing with the press, they rarely check anything. Feed’em the story, more often than not, they’ll run with it without checking it.
Better yet, send them a press release and they’ll publish it verbatum.
The woman is a publicity whore:
“A famous author offered her $1. 25 million mansion in Ocala, Florida as top prize for a pet essay writing contest. The generous donor is Clementina Marie Giovannetti, who has several bestsellers including “Clementina’s Love Story: Diary of a Healer”, “Caesar: The Greatest Love Story Ever Told By A Dog,” “Oh Fair Maiden” and “The Best-Selling Guide To Dream Interpretation.”
Chip,
We had a similar debacle here on the OR coast. Some over-leveraged old dude ran one after a year of open houses and NO offers. Of course each state is different but my position is that it IS a lottery and as such the “prize” is not material. Still and all this guy had a decent response and then decided he wanted to “open” the essay contest to even MORE entrants!
Obviously we cried foul but this old coot clearly feels he’s stumbled on to something. To be fair, I have no problem with someone doing this for a charity but to make this a regular practice is clearly outside of RESPA ( and countless other ) guidelines.
Yes, I remember the Oregon contest. Where was it? Gold Beach? Waldport? Can’t remember, but wherever it was, it didn’t deserve that ninny-hammer. The OR coast is wonderful, seeing what has happened to it in some places is heart-sickening.
“On May 18, Harrison held a jewelry sale at which a Cape Coral woman sold her $12,000 diamond ring for $2,000. She, her husband and three children are losing their home to a short sale and moving to Tennessee, he said.”
Assuming the $12K was an appraisal amount, that’s just about exactly what it is worth, at a fire sale. I’d pay 18% of GIA appraisal it it were something I wanted.
Want roundabout proof? Call your insurance company and try to lower the coverage on a diamond ring that you’ve got insured with them. No way, no how. It’s because they have the right to replace the stone in lieu of giving you the cash, so they replace it with a slightly bigger, slightly better one, having made a fortune in premiums on an item they knew would cost them far less than coverage to replace.
“‘There are so many shysters out there who take advantage of you financially and emotionally,” said Belinda Petroccia, who saw her income dip with the tumbling real-estate market and now faces foreclosure on her Wedgefield home in east Orange County. ‘When I saw this, I thought, ‘That’s what I need — maybe Shaq can help.’”
_______________________________________________________________
I suspect that Floridians will have to rebound on their own, without the help of an overglandulated athlete who appears to be in over his head.
“She just received a $500 bill out of the blue from her homeowner’s association.”
“Out of the blue”? HOAs don’t do assessments out of the blue. She just doesn’t participate in their decisions. Like most Americans, she has been trained to be passive and stupid like cattle…hand over your money and all is good.
People who don’t vote, then complain about the government…yeah, like I should care???
A strange market indeed here in Miami.
Most houses are still advertised at or near peak bubble prices. Then you have a fair amount of foreclosures, short sales and “motivated” sellers that sell for 50% of peak bubble, some even less. The market is in total disarray.
One of the main problems holding up the market are taxes and insurance. Together they total about 70-80% of what you could expect as rental income. Nobody knows how and if property taxes will be adjusted. The county is already in deep financial trouble so they can’t really afford to cut taxes/assesments.
Bottom line is that even if you own an investment property outright you barely would have a positive cash flow. Under that premise it is very difficult to find a buyer in uncertain economic times.
I knew this would Probably Happen and it PMO beyond Belief. All these clowns borrowed Millions with no income to pay the Payments . I waited patiently for 3 yrs.
No I finally found a Fixer Forclosure. I’ve rehabbed houses for 25 years.I did a Contract on a 3/2/2 SFH with a Sun Room , Golf Course View .2002 SF.
I can do a Total remodel for $7,500 in 2 weeks , ( MY Own Labor.)
It Has 3 broken Windows , and The roof to the Detached Garage needs a New roof from water Damage. $800 Materials.
I only need a 48K Loan. Less than 1 Year Income. LTV of 35%. Fico 702 and wifes 672 and haven’t missed or been late on 1 Bank or credit card payment in over a decade. Our debt to income is about 10% , if I don’t make a Dime.
But I can’t get a loan on the House , because it needs 3 pieces of Glass, and a roof on the Detached Garage. I could borrow a 150 K and buy an Overpriced POS from a Builder , that I would want to remodel anyway, so they can get rich, and I can spend 30 Years paying for a overpriced house I could build better for half the Money.
But I’d like to get a place I can do myself , and pay off in 5 or ten years so I can Retire.
Been paying 900 a month rent for 3 years to a specualtor from NY who borrowed 2.7 Million on spec houses with a 40 K Yr job and 0% Down.
I’ll probably lose My escrow and the House , keep renting , because You can’t buy a 12 x 50 trailer in the getto here for that price.
Some specualtor , will probably then Pay cash, put 5 grand in it an put it back on the market for 140 k like the one next door so the prices will stay propped up.
This really sucks. I’m so tired of the Florida Bubble Mess .
Marion - won’t the foreclosing lender give you the loan? There’s a metaphor out there that I can’t think of at the moment, but it seems pretty stupid for them to be unwilling to finance 35% LTV on a property they are stuck with.
marions,
Run, not walk, to your nearest FHA lender and get a FHA 203(b) rehabilitation loan. M&T Bank is THE best for processing these loans. Disclosure: I am not affiliated with M&T Bank, or with any bank, or with the mortgage industry in general.
The time to closing is longer than the standard 30 days. It is full doc. If you have an established rehab resume, you can do the work yourself, but you have got to swallow your pride and agree to supervision — could be weekly checkups — with the M&T construction supervisor. Other than a demonstrated ability to pay the loan, FHA really is an inclusive lender.
M&T was founded in Buffalo, NY by old steel money a long time ago, they are STILL headquartered in Buffalo, and they have old fashioned values. I’ve always been fond of them because they understand the value of a dime to a struggling Jane. I do not know, unfortunately, if they are in your area. They were making a push to the Southeast five years ago or so. But if they are not in your area, do not despair. ANY FHA LENDER MUST OFFER THESE LOANS. The trick is — understand the terms from the FHA website before you go in to talk to them. That way you will know if some suit is trying to snow you.
Here’s the FHA url for the program:
http://tinyurl.com/5tgc6
Hope I didn’t miss the boat in writing this. Good luck, and let us know how you make out.
Just from looking at asking rents, which are ridiculous compared to incomes here, I have come to the conclusion that it is almost impossible to be cash flow positive on anything purchased in Florida between 2003 and 2007.
Exactly the problem and it is why Floridians are in deep denial. Why people thought FL was a good place to invest in RE is beyond me. I see 1999 prices before this is over and tax rates will soar to make up for lost revenues. Those with SOH protection will then see that it was no protection at all. Though the millionaires in Palm beach, Hobe sound, marco island etc. will always be OK.
flotsam and jetsam
I actually had to look up the meaning of those words
Doesn’t the Hobbit have a chapter with that title?
>> “‘I can’t afford it. It’s not in my budget,’ said Norman.”
What’s a bujget?
um. wow.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/06/18/financial/f170405D70.DTL&tsp=1
Can somebody tell me when the Redneck Riviera part of the Panhandle started being called the “Emerald Coast”? I bet somebody was paid a lot of money to come up with that. We already have the Gold Coast, the Sun Coast, the First Coast, the Space Coast, and the Treasure Coast.
Someobdy nicked the description from Sardinia?
I posted a comment before and it didn’t go.
I may have had a bad word in there.
Anyway , the short Version.
Got a Contract on a Fixer in central Florida, 3/2/2 SFH with a sunroom, Golf Course View. .28 Landscaped acres, 2002 sf with garage. Needs 3 pieces of glass and new roof on the Detached garage to pass the banks inspection. I’ve rehabbed Houses for 25 Yrs , but I’m not a licensed contractor.
I can’t get the Money till the house Garage roof and windows are fixed. I was going to do a total remodel and for $7,500 in materials and my labor it’ll look like a Mansion compared to the 140k house down the street for sale .
Here’s the worst part , I need like 48k Loan to complete the Sale. $25 a SF with a .28 acre landscaped lot.
Less than 1 Year income, ( If I don’t make a Dime) 702 Fico. 35% LTV, DTI of less than 10%, and My wife and I haven’t missed or been late on a bank or credit card payment in a over a decade and I can’t find anyone who’ll loan us the Money.
I’ll probably lose the House and my escrow , and keep paying $900 a Month to the Speculator from that bought 2.7 Million of investment propertys with a 40k a yr job and no money down.
This kind of thing Makes Me Insane!
Limited documentation loans still exist…VERY easy to get for 35% LTV. What part of the story is missing?
Call your senator = no, call Senator Dodd!
Actually, why isn’t the seller interested in doing this and keeping the sale on target? It would be in his/her interest. $25 sq ft sounds like it might be a foreclosure or something, though. Good luck, maybe ry another bank?
Increase the offer price to offset repairs and have the contractors performing repairs agree to get paid out of closing. Did that here with a seller when the bank required extensive siding repairs.
Did the minimal stuff to pass bank inspection to get an average condition rating to get funded. Like you, I am doing the rest myself……Good luck.
Thanks for the Comments and Suggestions.
Yes, it’s a Bank owned repo. Limited doc is not a problem. Bank wants close in 2 weeks.
All my banks, I think are afraid of loaning money on anything that needs work , as They have so many trashed forclosures now.
I could have went FHA 203k, Or maybe done a Construction to perm loan , but as one said, they want the work done by licensed contractors, which kinda defeats my purpose of doing it myself and saving Money, and these loans take 2 long.
The funny thing about all this is , last year a Vacant , unimproved lot in this location , would have been worth 50k , and clearing , landscaping, utilities hookup, and impact fees would have run 25k on a lot , with no house on it.
I can finance a vacant lot, for 50k , but I can’t finance an improved lot with a 2000 sf house that needs tlc for 50k?
Or I can buy a New smaller home for 140K, but I can’t Finance a Bigger, Nicer , older home in a better neighborhood for less than half of market?
It gives me a headache.
would a co-signer help?
hows about getting your contractor’s license?
“‘This has been a nightmare,’ said Williams. ‘I can’t afford to lose that kind of money. I have a kid in college. This was my retirement money.’”
Another one of those “you couldn’t make this stuff up” stories. All it needs is for Williams to have one of those curiously apt names, like Scrood or Idjit.
Palmy, you still out there? I had a meeting in Bradenton and lunch in Palmetto today. It’s a lot more laid back than Pinellas. Are you retired, or do you work? I’m just curious as to what attracts you or keeps you in that area. My job is firmly mid-Pinellas, I just wonder if I’d like a less hectic place.