I recently read an article on REALTOR.com which listed six reasons a home sells and to be honest, they were all good reasons. But I don’t think they are the MAIN reason homes sell in this market.

The article contained “ideas” about helping a home to sell such as freshly painted front door, fix all leaks, etc. Basically, the same old and tired news. But honestly, in this market there are TWO reasons a home sells.

1. IT IS PRICED right. No amount of fix up is going to get you top dollar in this real estate market. Recently I sold a house that was absolutely stunning and totally renovated. It shined. But when the appraiser got involved it turned into little more than an “outhouse” in his narrow vision of value. The appraiser didn’t care about the renovations and the pristine condition. He cared about the foreclosure down the street which now jeopardized the value of this home. It was a fight but we got it sold. So I would say, PRICE IT FOR THE MARKET and be prepared to fight for your value.

2. LUCK – Short and sweet. Plain and simple – you need a little bit of luck on your side. In todays market all the rules and all the reasons are thrown out the window and are replaced by being in the right place at the right time. You are lucky. You have a willing seller (realistically priced – see #1) and a willing and READY buyer and the great good fortune to have a contract. Take the deal and run. You have, in essence, won the real estate lottery.

There you have it – a Reader’s Digest version of the reasons a home sells. GOOD LUCK.

I have some new statistics to share with all of you and they are pretty shocking when you consider the luxury market conditions and the number of home available for sale.

I would also like to say that I am so grateful to the many sellers out there that have confidence in my marketing program. I believe that the combination of a personalized marketing plan and Stirling Sotheby’s International Realty brand is a great team and we really try to do our best. I constantly try to look for new and creative marketing ideas to get my listings sold.

The May, 2009 update sums up the market quite well — only 1,055 homes sold in ORANGE COUNTY, Florida. This is a shocking number! 69% of the homes sold were sold for $200,000 or under. When you increase the sales price to $300,000 that accounts for 88% of all homes sold in Orange County, Florida. Over $1M luxury market is at .076% – in other word, almost non-existent with a mere 9 sales and a few of them short sales. One Winter Park estate home was original listed at $2.5M and sold for $1.4M.

Where do we go from here? We stay the course. In 23 years I have never seen market conditions like we are currently experiencing. We have a shortage of lenders willing and able to loan money unless the loan is backed by FHA. This explains why the average sales price for a home in Orlando right now is $130,000.

If your home is vacant, consider leasing at this time. At least it will cover some of your carrying cost until our elected leadership can figure out how to stimulate the economy and increase consumer confidence. As the housing market improves – so will the American economy.

For additional details on your neighborhood – call Linda at 407-898-9090 or my cell at 407-925-7721.  I am very excited to be busy and I still work hard to increase transactions in this difficult market.

(May 11, 2009 – Orlando, FL)

Members of the Orlando Regional REALTOR® Association in April sold nearly seven times more homes in the lower-price range categories than in the upper categories, which according to economists is typical of a rebounding market.

“Orlando’s housing market appears to be following a recognized healing pattern — from the bottom up — as evidenced by the greater number of sales in the lower-price categories,” explains ORRA President Les Simmonds, L.G. Simmonds Real Estate Corp. ”For example 75 percent of homes sold in April were purchased for less than $200,000, while 10 percent sold for more than $300,000. And, we expect the ratio of sales of lower-priced homes to increase exponentially as more and more first-time homebuyers seek to take advantage of the $8,000 federal tax credit.”

Sales activity in the lower-price categories gradually stimulates sales in other categories as sellers who want to become trade-up buyers are able to sell their current homes.

Forward-looking factors also indicate an improving market: REALTORS® filed 3,412 new contracts in the month of April, nearly double than the number of contracts that were filed in April 2008 (2,012), and are awaiting the closing of a record 5,818 pending sales. There were 103.90 percent more homes under contract last month than in April 2008 (2,853).

The 1,741 completed closings in April is a 41.43 percent increase compared to April 2008 (1,231) and a 0.74 percent decrease compared to last month (1,754). Year to date, there have been 42.58 percent more sales than by this time last year (5,867 to 4,115).

The median price of all Orlando homes sold in April ($132,900) decreased by 37.01 percent compared to April 2008 while the area’s average interest rate increased to 4.86 percent, up from last month’s record low of 4.67 percent.

Of the 1,741 sales in April, 49.68 percent of the homes were either bank-owned (733) or distressed (132). The median price of the bank-owned homes sold in April was $89,900, while the median price of distressed homes was $146,000. The median price for the “normal” homes (876) sold in April was $161,245.

The area’s affordability index continues to nudge the 200 percent mark, 194.01 percent to be exact. (An affordability index of 99 percent means that buyers earning the state-reported median income are 1 percent short of the income necessary to purchase a median-priced home. Conversely, an affordability index that is over 100 means that median-income earners make more than is necessary to qualify for a median-priced home.) Buyers who earn the reported median income of $52,307 can qualify to purchase one of 11,233 homes in Orange and Seminole counties currently listed in the local multiple listing service (MLS) for $257,840 or less.

The first-time homebuyer affordability in Orlando is currently 137.96 percent. First-time buyers who earn the reported median income of $35,569 can qualify to purchase one of 7,027 homes in Orange and Seminole counties currently listed in the local multiple listing service (MLS) for $155,850 or less.

Homes of all types spent an average of 104 days on the market before being sold in April 2009, and the average home sold for 93.14 percent of its listing. In April 2008 those numbers were 120 and 93.18 percent, respectively.

The majority of single-family homes (153) that changed hands in April 2009 were sold in the $200,000 – $250,000 price range. Eight hundred eighty-seven homes sold for less than $200,000 in April, and 159 sold for more than $300,000. On the far ends of the scale, 12 homes were sold for $1 million or more while 102 homes sold for less than $50,000.

Inventory

There are currently 20,194 homes available for purchase through the MLS. Inventory decreased by 1,254 homes from March 2009, which means that 1,254 more homes left the market than entered the market. Compared to last year, the April 2009 inventory level is 20.60 percent lower than it was in April 2008 (25,436).

The inventory level reflects an 11.60-month supply at the current pace of sales, which is down from the 12.23-month supply recorded in March 2009 and equal to the pace during the last quarter of 2006. Altogether, inventory months-of-supply has declined 5.15 percent since January 2009.

There are 14,472 single-family homes currently listed in the MLS, a number that is 4,579 (24.04 percent) less than this time last year. As usual, most (1,755) are listed in the $200,000 – $250,000 price range. Condos currently make up 3,928 offerings in the MLS, while duplexes/town homes/villas make up the remaining 1,794. Most condos (622) are priced below $50,000; the majority of duplexes/town homes/villas (273) are listed in the $120,000 – $140,000 price category.

Condos and Town Homes/Duplexes/Villas

The sales of condos in the Orlando area have increased by 167.52 percent (down from last month’s massive increase of 252.22 percent). A total of 313 condos changed hands in April of this year compared to 117 in April 2008. Nine hundred eighty-three condos have sold to date this year, a 138.01 percent increase over last year’s 413.

The most (148) condos in a single price category that changed hands were in the $1 – $50,000 price range, again nearly three times the number (49) that were sold in the next most populated category ($50,000 – $60,000).
Orlando homebuyers purchased 148 duplexes, town homes, and villas in April 2009, which is a 23.33 percent increase from April 2008 when 120 of these alternative housing types were purchased. The majority (29) of duplexes, town homes, and villas sold in April 2009 fell into the $100,000 – $120,000 price category.

MSA Numbers

Sales of existing homes within the Orlando MSA (Lake, Orange, Osceola, and Seminole counties) in April were up by 48.26 percent when compared to April of last year. Throughout the entire MSA, 2,178 homes were sold in April 2009 compared with 1,469 in April 2008.

Each county’s year-to-date sales comparisons are as follows:

Lake: 24.67 percent above 2008 (1,142 homes sold to date in 2009 compared to 916 in 2008);
Orange: 64.37 percent above 2008 (3,889 homes sold to date in 2009 compared to 2,366 in 2008);
Osceola: 105.54 percent above 2008 (1,410 homes sold to date in 2009 compared to 686 in 2008); and
Seminole: 6.74 percent above 2008 (1,030 sold to date in 2009 compared to 965 in 2008).

For detailed statistical reports, please visit www.orlrealtor.com and click on Housing Statistics on the top menu bar. This representation is based in whole or in part on data supplied by the Orlando Regional Realtor® Association or its Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Neither the Association nor its MLS guarantees or is in any way responsible for its accuracy. Data maintained by the Association or its MLS may not reflect all real estate activity in the market. Due to late closings, an adjustment is necessary to record those closings posted after our reporting date.

ORRA Realtor® sales, referred to as the core market, represent all sales by members of the Orlando Regional Realtor® Association, not necessarily those sales strictly in Orange and Seminole counties. Note that statistics released each month may be revised in the future as new data is received.

Orlando MSA numbers reflect sales of homes located in Orange, Seminole, Osceola, and Lake counties by members of any Realtor® association, not just members of ORRA.

Statistics on the sales of area homes that are sold without the assistance of a Realtor® are available in the Real Estate Index, a report produced jointly by ORRA and the Real Estate Attorney’s Fund.

Copyright © 2009 Orlando Regional Realtor® Association.
All rights reserved.

Real estate has gone crazy.

When I was a young girl in Miami, there was a department store that every week had an excuse for a sale. Their billboard would scream out some inane slogan like “Sunny day Sale – all clothes on SALE”. It was a standard guessing game for my family to figure out what excuse this particular store would come to rationalize having another SALE. In those days, stores did not typically have sales every day, week or weekend. One of my best memories was when Burdines had their once a year swimsuit sale and you would have thought the earth had gone mad. Now you can’t get anyone to buy anything unless it is on SALE.

As time marched on the word “SALE” lost its magic. Stores routinely have sales resulting in a word without meaning. It’s no longer special – it’s expected. In short, we have taken the power from the word SALE.

Homes in Orlando are at historically low prices. We are talking serious SALES prices here and yet we have a shortage of sales. Why? Because people still think lower prices are on the horizon, sales aren’t really sales and that low interest rates will remain forever. No one STILL wants to make the first move and it’s reaching a critical point.

Last week I drove down Colonial Drive and was shocked at the closed restaurants, empty parking lots and SALE signs. The world is going out of business. It’s time to recognize when a deal is a deal and right now, the whole world is on SALE.

Tell me…What is it going to take for you to buy?

Market conditions seem to be getting dicey to say the least. What do I see on the streets? Here’s a summary of Orlando real estate sales (from my personal observations):

1. If you are priced at $200,000 to $250,000 you should get a buyer. Why? Because most loans being written are FHA backed and accessible.
2. Which brings me to my second point – WE NEED RESPONSIBLE MORTGAGE LENDING TO RESUME. Not really a strange concept but banks appear to be retreating from the real estate battlefield and have gone AWOL. Without loans, you can’t sell houses – it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure this one out.
3. Buyers need to realize current market conditions (buyer’s market) are not going to last FOREVER. If I had a nickel for every time I have heard someone say “I’m waiting for the bottom” then I would be Trump-style rich.
4. High end market is seeing some backlash with the main focus being on declining home values.
5. We need to quit giving money to AIG for bonuses to their lame executives and give it to people who want to buy a home. Did I mention that it is ridiculously difficult to get a home loan right now?
6. Buyers are unreasonable, Sellers are frustrated and REALTORS are trying to hold it all together for the better good of the public. Really!

Will our market improve? Absolutely. When? When the banks and Congress come together to loosen the control on the mortgage loan markets.

It’s time to quit retreating and advance the cause of home ownership.

These are great times for real estate agents…it is FINALLY our chance to show what true professionals can accomplish for clients under the most trying circumstances.

The numbers of Orlando REALTORS who are still working (successfully) in our profession continue to diminish hourly. This is not necessarily a bad thing. We are left with the agents who are prepared to move forward utilizing the most innovative tools and relying on outstanding experience to get homes sold.

I am proud to be a part of this group. I feel change and I think it will be good news for all people who want to see real estate rebound. Will it be the craziness of 2005? No. But will it be fair market value and a sense of order and civility. Absolutely.

Real estate is a lot like reality shows these days…outwit, outlast and outplay. It’s a unique position real estate agents find themselves in and the REAL world is throwing us some roadblocks and opportunities.

But the good thing about this is CHANGE. The real estate agents, sellers and buyers who recognize that real estate in 2009 is not the same as ANY OTHER TIME IN HISTORY will be the winners of the game. It’s all about being able to adapt to changing technology, changing interest rates and changing habits of buyers and sellers.

As we enter a new year, it will be so much fun to watch our industry grow and expand. The ranks of REALTORS are sure to decrease but in the residue will be the best REALTORS in the business who realize this is REALLY about being a professional and serving the needs of our clients. The REALTORS who remain will adapt and change and grow with our fantastic industry. It’s truly a win-win, not only for our profession but also for our clients.

Let the games begin!

I haven’t posted in a while and there is a good reason. I have been observing, carefully, what is going on in the world today and frankly, I was flummoxed. This is like being in a Fellini movie and watching the world slog by in slow-mo. It’s just a mad, mad, real estate world!

The good news? Well the good news is that there really IS GOOD NEWS. As trite as it may sound, things go up and things go down. Things change. Sometimes that change is for the better although lately it has not been so. But on the plus side, change (to coin a current political trend) is coming and it’s going to get better.

In Orlando real estate, we see buyers, we see realistic sellers, and we see people who still WANT TO OWN A HOME. It’s not ALL BAD NEWS.

I still can’t help but think that some of this mess is simply the result of politics as usual. But I look forward to change and I look forward to a brighter tomorrow. It’s coming. Be ready.

Luxury homes sales continue to improve in Central Florida. There are currently 1,260 homes for sale in Central Florida that are priced over $1,000,000. This may sound like a significant number of high priced homes but it is actually a reasonable number of homes in this price point. In other words, there isn’t a huge volume of luxury homes available. This makes it a good time to start thinking of selling and if you want to buy…get going!

There were 66 homes SOLD in the last 90 days over $1M with the highest local sale located in Winter Park, Florida for a final sales price of $5,375,000. This fabulous home sold on July 1st and was on the market for over 275 days.

Most importantly, there are currently 50 homes UNDER CONTRACT. This is the statistic that matters…there are almost as many homes that are UNDER CONTRACT as have sold in the last ninety days. If you are looking for a “sign” that now is the time to buy – this should be it.

I am going to make this very simple. It is absolutely essential that the Federal Government bailout and help to support Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac in order to restore a semblance of order and reverse the chaos that is currently overtaking our lending institutions.

Fannie Mae’s vision statement reads: “Fannie Mae’s role is to serve America’s housing market. We don’t lend money to home buyers but we do work with lender partners to make affordable financing available for people who are ready to buy a home. We want buyers to find a home and a mortgage they can afford over the long term”.

In our current market, we have too many lenders who do not have sufficient reserves or sufficient investors to fund the purchase of homes throughout the United States. This is critical. I have said it before and it bears repeating – AS THE HOUSING MARKET GOES…SO GOES THE ECONOMY.

Every American should be thrilled that finally, our governmental representatives recognize that they must actively invest in these two entities to stop the insanity. Their involvement will help to fund home purchases, refinance horrendous loans and yes…bail out some borrowers prior to foreclosure. It will also stimulate the economy, reduce the inventory of homes on the market, help neighborhood values stabilize, help people avoid foreclosure, and keep our economy moving in the right direction.

In addition, there is a direct correlation between the health of the housing market and the secondary market of home related purchases, i.e. furniture, lawn companies, pool businesses, contractors, and wood manufacturing…just to name a few. Many businesses count on homes being sold AND FUNDED and this is a tremendous shot in the arm for the recovery of our economy.

Now that’s a Good Thing!