Happy dance time

Everyone now.

From Jacksonville to Miami, from Fort Lauderdale to Sarasota and Bradenton. Time for the buyer's to do the happy dance.

Here's why.

As reported on the Sarasota Herald-Tribune Web site.

"The median price of a home sold last month declined to $207,800 nationally, a drop of 5.1 percent from a year ago, the biggest year-over-year price decline on record.

In the Sarasota-Bradenton market, 528 homes changed hands during October compared with 634 in the same month of 2006.The market’s median sales price was $263,900, down from $278,100 a year ago."

Now everyone start dancing, start celebrating.

You are the happy buyer's out there.

You can now afford to buy that house you always wanted.

You will make the deal of a lifetime.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149
www.Teamworksfla.com

It's raining prices

Well, the trend continues.

Prices are raining down, as the bottom prices slip even further down. Yippee!

The Bradenton and Sarasota market housing prices dropped 6 percent for the third quarter with average home price at $283,800 compared to $301,800 a year ago, the media reported.

I said before keep a close eye on the Miami market as prices appeared to stabilize a bit but homes sales dropping like a rock.

Well according to news reports Miami and Tampa lead the Standard and Poor's housing index in price declines nationwide. Miami dropped 10 percent and Tampa 11.1 percent.

Why am I so happy? I'm a buyer's agent, the faster those prices drop the sooner the buyers will get back in the game.

There are bargains galore out there and more coming on the market everyday.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149

The times are a changing

Some of the latest market statistics show that the Manatee and Sarasota area dropped the least amount for homes sales last month.

Basically the area had about a five per cent decrease one of the lowest in the state.

If you look at the region of Bradenton, Sarasota and Anna Maria Island, a couple of years ago home prices skyrocketed about 35 percent or more.

In the past two years they have probably dropped about 24 per cent.

So in reality most home owners are still we ahead if they purchased before the boom.

Now the recent figures may indicate we are starting to find bottom. It has been predicted several times that we are there but we still had a way to go.

My gut tells me we're starting to skip across bottom. There are still a lot of overpriced homes out there but the huge influx of foreclosures and short sales has helped to drive prices down to an affordable level.

No longer do you have to spend your life savings just to afford a house. I have seen pretty nice three and four bedroom homes in the high 100k and low 200k range.

Not bad considering that a couple of years ago anything under 200k was considered fixer upper range.

Some of the builders are getting into the act starting to build new homes in the mid to high 100k range.

I don't see prices rising again in the foreseeable future but I do see indications they may stabilize a bit.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149

See a deal, seal a deal

One thing about this on going buyer's market is there is good number of really good deals out there.

Now one of the key ingredients to being a great real estate investor is knowing when to pull the trigger.

I have had a couple of instances lately in the Bradenton, Sarasota, Anna Maria Island area where some great deals of come up.

If you know its a great deal, you won't be the only one. A couple of times now I have had clients hesitate only to find out that somebody else scooped up the property from under them.

If you and your agent know its a good deal so will somebody else. There are a lot of investors in the waters right now sorting through the incredible deals and they are getting them.

Problem is by the time the buyer's who hesitate finally decide to move they will probably be talking about the one that got away.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149

I can see for miles and miles and miles and miles

Siesta Key Beach has to be one of the prettiest spots in the country and possibly the world.

Sugar white sand beaches in Sarasota County. A village that has something for everyone and the Gulf of Mexico at your front door steps.

I was down there this week with clients scouting out some houses and this key to has started to bet a little more realistic in pricing.

Granted I see very little that I believe shouldn't come down in price. Siesta Key was no exception but I did see some homes that used to be listed well over a $1 million that are now in the high 800k range and you can see the beach and gulf.

With a little incentive (a quick close with a cash buyer) I'm thinking those prices could come down some more.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149

Let the games begin

I was reading Gary Keller's book the Millionaire Real Estate Investor last night.

What struck me is that the current speculators that are losing money in this housing market should have read the book first.

In Bradenton and Sarasota we have a lot of speculators. Here is why they are speculator. Investors take time to research the market and look for the best deal that will give them a good return over time, for instance a rental property that will provide a positive cash flow the day they take possession.

Speculators jump in with everyone else looking for a quick return and hoping the market continues to rise. There is always a price correction and speculators often catch the wave at the wrong time, think of the current housing market and the dot com craze.

Many of the speculators in real estate are the ones selling their homes at a loss right now. Many of the investors are the ones buying them knowing they will make money in the long run.

Which side of that equation would you like to be on?

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149

I can see for months and months

Welcome to the Gulf Coast of Florida auction.

No, you don't have to go the actual action to buy a home. In a sense every home here on sale is in an auction.

Those thousands of condos in Sarasota and Manatee are waiting for the right bidder to scoop them up.

This auction isn't over in an hour or day. This one is going to last for months and months.

You see don't have to go to an auction to buy a home for 80 cents or less on the dollar. You can just go and make an offer.

What's even better is that don't have to take it as is. You can ask for inspection and repairs.

Now isn't that easier than going to an auction.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149

Brrrr, love that cold weather

Yep, in Florida we love that cold northern weather.

Home heating prices bothering you? Come on down, for whole lot less a month you can probably heat and cool your house in our neck of the woods.

Once you get acclimatized to the Gulf Coast of Florida, like our area in Bradenton/Sarasota, you'll be thinking 70 degrees is downright chilly.

What makes this an even better time to settle here is the housing prices have dropped like the thermometer in the state of New York.

There are a lot of nice warm places by the beach left. You can leave winter coat at home.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149

Pump up the sales

Hear the buzz?

From Venice to Anna Maria Island the low hum is building as the snowbirds start to trickle down to beaches, golf courses and restaurants.

In Sarasota and Bradenton the licence plates from the northern states and the central Canadian provinces have begun to show up on the highways and biways.

The Canadians in particular are going to be happy campers. With the good ol' USD remaining low against the Canadian dollar the urge to buy down here may never be stronger.

With more than 4,400 single family homes and 1,900 condos on sale in Manatee County alone they will have plenty to chose from.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149

Waiting on a short sale

A lot of buyer's out there are thinking that buying a home in a short sale situation can lead to a pretty good bargain.

And they may be right.

But there are couple of things to keep in mind. A short sale is when the homeowner is trying to sell the home for less than they owe the mortgage holder.

In these cases several parties have to agree to the price and terms, the buyer, the seller and the mortgage holder and possibly the investor in the mortgage.

If you're buying a home that is in a short sale you're basically asking several people to lose money.

If you are a buyer this a great time to be looking for bargains such as short sales.

The kicker is they can take time. A lot of time.

Mortgage investors, mortgage companies and banks, don't like to lose money. So they probably won't rush to get back to you when you put an offer asking them to do so.

I've had short sales where I received a response in 10 days and others where it has taken two months.

Patience is key here.

If you are looking at a short sale ask your agent to find out how long the response time from the bank is likely to be.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149

Auction? What auction?

I was at auction in the Bradenton and Palmetto area for waterfront property on Saturday.

Out of seven properties, six houses and one lot there was only one acceptable bid for $250,000 for a house on a canal.

One house at the end of a canal right on the Manatee River the bid went no higher than $400,000.

Add to that a lot on a canal on one bid up to $235,000. The lot nearby has an asking price of more than $500,000.

The minimums on six of the homes could not be reached.

This tells me either buyer's are being even more cautious and waiting for the market to go down or were hoping to make an even better deal after the auction.

One more thing it tells me that waterfront now is becoming extremely affordable.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149

O' Canada

My Canadian brethren in Toronto tell me their real estate market is hot, the dollar is strong and getting stronger and the weather is getting colder.

Time for those Canadians to start look at the Gulf Coast of Florida for that second home.

The U.S. dollar is dropping, it is a very strong buyer's market and the weather is pretty darn nice.

From Longboat Key, to St. Armand's Circle, through Sarasota and Anna Maria Island the prices are going down.

There is no better time for Canadians dreaming of a condominium by the beach to fulfill their wish.

All the best
Greg Owens PA
Keller Williams Realty of Greater Manatee
941.779.5149