“I Want To Live By The Beach And I Only Want To Spend $70,000.00!”

I get calls like this all the time. Here’s how they start out…”I want a 3 bedroom 2 bath home in a gated community, near the beach and I only want to spend around $70,000.00!” Huh? “Yeah, I know the market sucks and I can probably steal something for $100,000.00 near the beach.” Huh?

Sir..can I ask you a question? “What beach are you talking about?” You must have Fort Lauderdale Beach confused with some shanty town beach lined with all you can eat fish fry’s and sleazy bars and t-shirt shops. Read more

The Best Places To Live In Fort Lauderdale | Fort Lauderdale Neighborhoods

 

The Best Places To Live In Fort Lauderdale | Fort Lauderdale Neighborhoods … I bet you thought I was really going to tell you where the best neighborhoods in the Fort Lauderdale real estate market are.

I also bet a lot of my competitors, who can’t keep pace with the Fort Lauderdale Real Estate Blog, thought they had me and were all set to file a complaint against me for “steering”. Read more

Jackson Tower | Jackson Tower Luxury Hi-Rise Condominium

Available Units In The Jackson Tower

Jackson Tower is a hi-rise luxury condominium located on Fort Lauderdale Beach. The Jackson Tower is close to everything including the world famous Las Olas Boulevard shopping district known for its fine boutiques and wonderful restauants. Read more

Coral Springs Foreclosures

Coral Springs Foreclosures are in great demand. As we have begun branching out into the Coral Springs real estate market, we are already getting emails from prospective clients looking to by Coral Springs Foreclosures.

There is little wonder why. When this community flourished in the boom, there were a lot of homes built and we’re talking some really nice properties. Now, many of those homes are selling for as much as 50% or more off of their previous sales price. I’d call that a market worth looking into. Read more

Do You Ever Wonder If You Are Being Told The Truth By Your Real Estate Agent?

I saw this video online yesterday and it really made me laugh. Why? Because I was on a few websites and some agents were actually freaking out over this video. So it really makes you wonder what kind of shenanigans are being pulled on unsuspecting buyers and sellers.

I LOVED this video because I think that buyers and sellers should be as educated as possible and that they should know what kind of person they may be dealing with. What’s wrong with shedding some light on some of the tricks that bad Realtors pull. Read more

Make Sure You Understand Taxes Due On A Short Sale

You would think that with all of the foreclosures in Fort Lauderdale and throughout South Florida, that the state and county officials who handle tax collection would work to facilitate the rebound of the housing sector.

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Federal Reserve Keeps Interest Rates Steady

I was waiting..and waiting..and waiting to write a post about what the Federal Reserve should do about interest rates and had to stop pending their announcement. I did not want to venture a guess and it’s a good thing that I did not. 

Although reducing the rate may help out some homeowners and borrowers, especially those with Home Equity lines, it could actually have an unwanted effect and result in higher mortgage interest rates for the rest of us.

Luckily, I bit my tongue in trying to hurry a post and make a prediction. In a statement that was released yesterday…

The Federal Open Market Committee decided today to keep its target for the federal funds rate at 2 percent.

Strains in financial markets have increased significantly and labor markets have weakened further. Economic growth appears to have slowed recently, partly reflecting a softening of household spending. Tight credit conditions, the ongoing housing contraction, and some slowing in export growth are likely to weigh on economic growth over the next few quarters. Over time, the substantial easing of monetary policy, combined with ongoing measures to foster market liquidity, should help to promote moderate economic growth.

Inflation has been high, spurred by the earlier increases in the prices of energy and some other commodities. The Committee expects inflation to moderate later this year and next year, but the inflation outlook remains highly uncertain.

The downside risks to growth and the upside risks to inflation are both of significant concern to the Committee. The Committee will monitor economic and financial developments carefully and will act as needed to promote sustainable economic growth and price stability.

Voting for the FOMC monetary policy action were: Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman; Christine M. Cumming; Elizabeth A. Duke; Richard W. Fisher; Donald L. Kohn; Randall S. Kroszner; Sandra Pianalto; Charles I. Plosser; Gary H. Stern; and Kevin M. Warsh. Ms. Cumming voted as the alternate for Timothy F. Geithner.

I guess the Fed needed to quickly make an announcement and move on to bigger and much more pressing issues. Like what in the world are they going to do with AIG?

I’ll keep you posted.

Democrats Want Lenders To Freeze Foreclosure Proceedings

Democrats are again calling for a moratorium on foreclosures. The democratic leaders in the U.S. Senate are seeking a freeze on all foreclosure activity for 90 days.

Now that the U.S. Government has control over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Senate Democrats are looking to flex a little muscle and force the two mortgage giants to stop foreclosures and help more borrowers stay in their homes. for 90-day foreclosure freeze

Senators urge Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac not to foreclose on mortgages they hold and help borrowers stay in homes.

The troubled home loan giants, seized by the government last Sunday, are being “asked” that they look at other options instead of foreclosure. Fannie and Freddie should rather work to help struggling borrowers stay in their homes, four senators say in a letter to the firms’ new chief executives and the regulator now controlling them. They’re calling for a 90-day freeze on foreclosures.

Fannie (FNM, Fortune 500) and Freddie (FRE, Fortune 500) together hold or guarantee some $5 trillion in outstanding mortgages — more than half the nation’s total.

The Bush administration announced last Sunday it was taking over the two companies in a bid to help reverse a prolonged housing and credit crisis.

What do you think about this? Do you think that this makes sense or do you feel it compounds problems? With Lehman brothers going under and Merrill Lynch being absorbed by Bank of America, can the government be expected to time and time again step in to help homeowners…many of whom should have known better than to take on such debt in the first place?

I believe that it is not the government’s place or responsibility to bailout homeowners and lenders. What do you think?

What Does The Surge In Foreclosures And Mortgage Defaults Mean To You?

Last Friday, the Mortgage Bankers Association said that more than 4 million American homeowners with a mortgage… a record 9 percent … were either behind on their payments or in foreclosure at the end of June.

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Why Should You Ignore The List Price Of A Home?

So much is made of statistics saying one thing and real estate agents saying another. But the numbers don’t lie. They may tell a story that an agent doesn’t want to hear, but they most assuredly don’t lie. Sellers listen up. If your home isn’t selling you had better make sure that your agent isn’t ignoring relevant market data.

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