Cape Coral house

Interested in buying a short sale in Cape Coral

Are you interested in buying a short sale in Cape Coral, but aren’t sure how? We all know of someone that has been involved with this type of sale and maybe had a nightmare transaction. Good news; the more you understand this process the easier it may be to easily navigate through it.

What is your time frame? How long do you have to wait for an answer?

Most short sales on average, take about 30-60 days to receive any kind of answer from the bank. A short sale is definitely not a quick solution if you lack patience or need to secure housing by a deadline. Many consumers are leery; they know or knew someone that had a nightmare experience. The short sale may have taken 6 months or more to close; if ever. That is certainly not the norm, but it can happen.

The next thing to consider: Choosing a Real Estate Agent

A knowledgeable agent is certainly the first step in a successful short sale process. Ask questions like “have you helped a buyer purchase a short sale before?” If so, ‘how did the process go?” Then ask, “Have you ever negotiated a short sale for a seller before?” and if so, “how did that process go?” Watch for the agents’ opinion of short sales. If an agent has had a bad experience with a short sale you’ll be able to pick up on that. If they feel like they are a waste of time you’ll notice that too. Then you need to find someone who understands the process and can help you through it.

Next: View the homes

When you are viewing the homes take special note of the condition of the property. Is the property occupied or vacant? Are there tenants living there? If so, when will their lease expire? Has the home been maintained? Has it been destroyed? Keep in mind that short sales are written on an AS-IS contract; that means the seller will not pay for repairs to the property. What you see is what you get. The AS-IS contract will be discussed in more detail later.

Ready to Submit an Offer: Make sure it is written up correctly

There is a basic method to making short sales as streamline as possible with regards to the buyer’s agent. Your agent should of course called the listing agent to determine the status of the short sale. Does the seller plan to accept 1 offer or many? Have any offers already been submitted? If so, what was the outcome? Was there a previous bank approval? What were those terms? Does the seller plan to sign an offer and then take the property off of the market or do they intend to keep it available for sale?

Your offer will consist of the following:

Far/Bar As-Is Contract: This is an approved as-is contract. It does not require for the seller to be responsible for any repairs. It does give the buyer the right to an inspection. If you are not comfortable with the inspection results you can opt out of the contract with no penalty.
Short Sale Addendum: This form outlines timeframes. You can give any number of days for the seller to obtain bank approval, as we discussed the average is 30-60 days. You can make the offer’s effective date good from the time of acceptance by the seller or from the time of receipt of written approval from the bank. It is often advised that you wait for written approval as to not lose money with inspections not knowing the outcome of your offer.
Approval letter if financing: This is a letter from your lender approving your financing.
Or
Proof of Funds if paying with cash: This can be a letter from your bank stating “Mrs. Buyer has adequate funds available to close on said property for $this much money” or it can be a copy of a bank statement.

Earnest Deposit: Typically at least $1,000. The seller’s lender will want proof of this so go ahead and have it ready. It shouldn’t matter who is holding the escrow but if the seller is already working with a specific local title company it is best to have it placed there.

Seller Acceptance:

This often gets tricky for buyers to understand. The seller(not the bank) owns the property and must sign the offer before the bank will begin to process the file for approval. The seller should not take more than a couple days to sign. Keep in mind; the seller is only agreeing to sell the property if the lender agrees to a short sale.

Then you: WAIT for seller’s lender’s approval

Determine how often you’ll get updates. Do you want to know what is going on every week? Only when there is progress? Do you want to be called? Emailed? Communication is key. You and your agent should have a plan. Keep in mind that you and your agent are at the mercy of the seller’s agent. Your agent cannot call the bank for updates; he/she will only get the information from the seller’s agent.

Great News: Approval

Now your effective date starts. This means that your inspection period starts, your loan approval period starts. Make sure you work diligently on your financing because asking for an extension can be a real headache.

At Closing: One extra form

Most banks are now requiring the buyer to sign an affidavit of arms length transaction. This ensures that nothing funny is going on. Some banks are even doing background checks on buyers to verify this as well. Otherwise your closing will be handled like any other real estate closing.

Good Luck, happy buying… Check out the homes in Cape Coral for sale now that are short sales:

Cape Coral housing inventory low

In Cape Coral we have trended from an over abundance of housing inventory to some of the lowest levels in years. The reason for this change is simple. The home prices have fallen; interest rates are low, giving that little push to buyers that were on the fence. Investors are also doing their part; scooping up the last of the “bargains” making it a bit more challenging for the everyday consumer.

We can further analyze this by the absorption rate, the ability of the real estate market to absorb or sell all of the houses for sale in a given amount of time. Currently there are 17 weeks of single family homes on the market. What does that mean to you?

Buyer’s Market: Over 7 months of supply
Balanced/Transitional Market: 5 to 7 months of supply
Seller’s Market: Less than 5 months of supply

It looks like there is no better time than now to purchase that new homes, vacation home or investment property in Cape Coral FL. Call us now and we can help you find that perfect property.

Currency Conversion calculator

The value of the US Dollar is down…… That translates to HUGE saving for our international buyers.

Prices in Cape Coral are still much lower than our peak, but are steadily rising.

AND

There ARE financing options for foreign nationals available….

The median price for a single family home with gulf access in Cape Coral is $375,000 USD

That is 284062.5 EUR ….

OR

370500.00 CAD

What will it cost you to own your dream home?

If you have been considering investing in a home in SW Florida contact our team today. We can assist you in the search to find the right property in Cape Coral or Fort Myers, negotiated at the right price, financed in the best manner to a smooth closing.

Cape Coral real estate statistics

Have you started thinking about your goals for 2012? If buying a home is one of your top ten we have gathered some of our area market statistics from 2011 to help you in making a plan to achieve your dream of home ownership.  If you are on the fence about buying, I am here to tell you that prices are rising.  Last year the average single family home sold for 130,990. This year it has risen to 149,417.  That is more that a 14% increase, and to top it off 97.7% of those homes were sold in 30 days or less.  Still waiting to see if the market has hit bottom?

Thinking of selling? Now more than ever is a great time to spruce up your digs and get it listed.  Our super busy selling season is here.   We are clearing out inventory at a great pace here in Cape Coral FL, don’t miss out on your opportunity; buying or selling we are here to help. Luxury, waterfront, golf course, short sales, and distressed, we want to help you start out your 2012 with the sale or purchase of a home here in SW Florida.  Please don’t hesitate to call we look forward to hearing from you!

Happy Holidays,

The Florida Future Realty Team

239-542-8521

inquiry@floridafutureagents.com

 

Cape Coral; positive housing market predictions

It appears that after a few trouble years for our local real estate market the clouds are parting and the sun is shining brightly over Cape Coral and Fort Myers Florida.  There have been two studies performed by two separate online search giants; Realtor.com and Trulia.   They have suggested through their research we (Cape Coral)  are poised for a real estate rebound.

Realtor.com has published a Top Ten Turnaround Report.  It states that there are “6 Florida cities that were considered good bets for an upswing in sales.” This information was gathered through a formula that was created by analyzing recent price appreciation, changes in inventory, median age of inventory, number of searches through there site (Realtor.com), and area unemployment statistics.  In Cape Coral we have experienced an increase in the median home price, smaller amount of inventory, our unemployment rates  have stabilized, and we have seen recently; an influx of foreign buyers to our market.

Realtor.com turnaround list (Florida cities only) includes:

  1. Miami
  2. Orlando
  3. Fort Myers-Cape Coral
  4.  
  5. Fort Lauderdale
  6. Sarasota-Bradenton
  7. Lakeland- Winterhaven

Trulia has published a similar report, Trulia’s Metro Mover Report.

This report was designed to analyze home searching data. They have looked at the number of people that search for homes is a particular city. This study also includes people interested in rental properties. They then compare it to the number of city residents looking for somewhere else to call home.  It’s findings; an area with a high number of searches within the same city and low searched for elsewhere suggests an increase in demand for housing.

Their list is as follows: (Florida cities only)

  1.  North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota
  2.  
  3.  
  4. Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Deerfield Beach
  5. Cape Coral – Fort Myers
  6. West Palm Beach-Boca Raton-Boynton Beach
  7.  
  8.  
  9.  
  10. Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford

If you are on the fence about buying, or looking to make a positive real estate investment, Cape Coral is a great place to do just that. If we can help you with your real estate goals, no matter how big or small, give us a call. We look forward to hearing from you.

Yours in Success,

The Florida Future Realty Team

239-542-8521

inquiry@floridafutureagents.com

Homes are selling fast in Cape Coral

Did you know that in recent months the average home in Cape Coral sits on the market for 30 days or less and many with multiple offers?  Sure makes it hard when you are searching for a home from another state or country.  It is nice to sit in the privacy of your own home and spend hours examining each detail and performing your own due diligence on the homes you have added to your favorites, but the reality is that most of these homes will be sold by the time you have narrowed your list.   It is true that searching for a home has become much easier by way of the many search sites, but taking too much time will result in missing out. Certainly know what is available, do your research, and find what specific criterion meets your needs, but if your scouting trip isn’t planned for months rest assured the inventory will have turned over more than once. 

 

We are now approaching our high selling season, inventory is down from past years and prices are trending upward.  So if you are on the fence about buying, hop a flight and get in on the action.  If we can help you with your buying or selling needs, please don’t hesitate to call.

Yours in Success,

The Florida Future Realty Team

239-542-8521

inquiry@floridafutureagents.com

Cape Coral House

Cape Coral real estate market in the news

Cape Coral HouseCape Coral and Fort Myers are making headlines all over!

Did you read about the Cape Coral and Fort Myers real estate market on Inman News?

http://www.inman.com/news/2011/05/23/10-markets-with-fastest-rising-real-estate-prices
“Two Florida markets saw the highest jumps: median list price in Fort Myers-Cape Coral rose 25.7 percent to $225,000, and the median in Miami rose 8.6 percent to $239,000.
Shreveport-Bossier City, La., followed with an 8.1 percent increase, to $173,000. Fort Myers-Cape Coral and Miami also saw the biggest year-over-year drops in inventory: -25.3 percent and -29.9 percent, respectively.”

What about CNNMoney’s take on the rise in prices in Cape Coral?

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2011/real_estate/1104/gallery.10_turnaround_towns/6.html

Even Realtor.org had a blurb about the Cape Coral real estate market:
http://www.realtor.org/rmodaily.nsf/pages/News2011050503?OpenDocument

The Gulf Coast Business Review reminded us that our Fort Myers local board of REALTORS announced that Foreclosures are fading in comparison to traditional sales here in the Fort Myers and Cape Coral areas:

http://www.review.net/section/detail/5-18-2011-foreclosures-fade-in-fort-myers/

They also let us know that we may be turning point central:
http://www.review.net/section/detail/5-20-2011-fort-myers-recovery-central/

Want to read other great news coming out of Cape Coral? We are ranked the second safest city in all of Florida:

http://www.news-press.com/article/20110520/CRIME/110519055/Cape-Coral-second-safest-city-Florida

Summer is historically our ‘slowest’ time of the year for Cape Coral real estate sales so if you are looking to make a home purchase in SW Florida come on down this summer and see what we have to offer. I have a strong suspicion that come fall (our typical busy season) we will see more price and inventory adjustments here in the Cape Coral real estate market.

There are so many different unique opportunities right now for buyers of Cape Coral real estate.

Some experts warn that this ‘new’ news may leave Cape Coral home sellers confused about pricing. I’m sure it will confuse some of the sellers in Cape Coral. That is why it is the best idea for Cape Coral sellers to consult with a reliable and honest real estate professional who specializes in Cape Coral real estate. Considering selling your home or property in Cape Coral? Contact us at Florida Future Realty, Inc. to find out if now is the best time for you to sell your Cape Coral real estate. We market our listings internationally & have a solid reputation for selling houses in and around Cape Coral, Florida.

Our Broker, Susan Milner also just created a video update showing the first quarter’s statistics for the Cape Coral real estate market that I’m sure you’ll find interesting:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZueAR3m9Aiw

Yours in Success,

Florida Future Realty, Inc.

(239) 542-8521

inquiry@floridafutureagents.com