Hungry for Homes, Buyers Get Edged Out

As South Florida’s home sales have continued to outpace national trends, distressed properties are still dominating the market, with more than half of all homes and condos sold last month at some stage in the foreclosure process. And cash-happy investors have been scooping up these bargain basement deals at a fast clip, often before middle-income buyers can get financing. [Source: Miami Herald]

To stay on top of what other investors are watching:  Foreclosures and Short Sales

• Watercolor Foreclosures and Watercolor Short Sales at Watercolor Real Estate News
• Watersound Condo and Home Foreclosures and Watersound Condo and Home Short Sales at Watersound Real Estate News
• Seaside Condo Foreclosures and Seaside Short Sales at Seaside Real Estate News

JohnMoran

John Moran, an award winning realtor at Keller Williams Realty, specializes in investment properties including beach front condos, second homes and residential land. He ranks in the top 1-1/2% of all realtors in the MLS for sales in 2007, 2008 & 2009. For more information about Destin Area real estate including Destin Foreclosures call or text John Moran at 850-217-7618.

That’s What I’m Talking About!

The reason you own Seaside Florida Real Estate is so you can hangout at the beach and do fun things like enter YOLO Board Surfing contests like this one that was held at the beach in Seaside last fall. 

YOLO Boarding is where you stand on a surfboard like board holding a paddle that acts as a rudder and paddle.  It’s a great workout and tons of fun.  In this contest people from all over 30A ,  Destin and Panama City came to compete and have fun.  Many of them own real estate in the area.  If you are interested in owning property in the area check out Seaside Florida Homes For Sale or 30A Real Estate News or if you are interested in Panama City Condo Foreclosures be sure to look at the Panama City Beach Real Estate News.

Thanks for stopping by – if you have any pictures that you would like to share with us please do so.  Thanks again.

JohnMoran

John Moran, an award winning realtor at Keller Williams Realty, specializes in investment properties including beach front condos, second homes and residential land. He ranks in the top 1-1/2% of all realtors in the MLS for sales in 2007, 2008 & 2009. For more information about Destin Area real estate including Destin Foreclosures call or text John Moran at 850-217-7618.

Here is more information about investing and Seaside Florida Real Estate.  As always I think it’s very important to be as informed as possible on how to maximize your investing power.  So with that in mind I found this article about using IRA’s to buy real estate at Market Watch.com. Take a look and let me know what you think.

Using IRAs to buy real estate

Six reasons to tap retirement funds now to buy rental property

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — One of today’s soundest investments is never touted in financial-services ads. The reason: Wall Street wouldn’t make any money off it.

Since 1974, Americans have had the ability to use IRA assets to buy investment property. Yet the means to do that — called a self-directed IRA — remains one of the least known and unheralded investment vehicles in the vast financial marketplace.

With foreclosed homes selling at dimes on the dollar, residential real estate is a bargain for investors holding cash. And if they can put 30% down, IRA investors will find specialty lenders eager to help them leverage their retirement savings with mortgages on rental properties.

The U.S. housing market may not yet have hit bottom, but the winds appear to be shifting. Existing-home sales are on the mend in hardest-hit markets and foreclosure-avoidance programs are expected to stem the rising inventory of bank repossessions, meaning the window to buy at rock-bottom prices could close before the year is out.

Bear in mind homes purchased with IRA funds can’t be used for personal purposes. Doing so risks the IRS declaring the assets withdrawn and demanding immediate payment of income taxes and penalties on the entire account value.

Still, as an investment readily understood by anyone who’s been through the home buying and selling process, purchasing a steeply discounted property that can produce annual income of 10% and more is a low-risk strategy for uncertain times — especially for retirees whose fixed-income investments are paying paltry yields right now. Read more on setting up a managing a self-directed IRA.

Here are six reasons why buying real estate with an IRA is a potentially lucrative and wise move today:

1. A solid alternative to stocks

When economies teeter, investors often run to hard assets such as gold — humankind’s historic “store of value.” Yet gold’s value is measured not only in ounces but also in the intangible fear that surrounds its price spikes.

When it comes to hard assets, there’s perhaps no greater shared sense of value from Mongolia to Montana than for land and a dwelling. And in U.S. history, there’s never been such a fire sale on our housing stock.

The Great Depression exacted a heavy toll on home values, but there was nowhere near the inventory flooding the… housing market as in the past year. The reason: A collapse in home prices, not stocks, triggered this meltdown.

Of course, some would say foreclosed-home buyers capitalize on others’ misfortune. But the sooner we clear the massive, nationwide inventory of unsold homes — which many economists argue is a key to recovery — the better off we’ll all be.

2. An investment well-suited for long-term investors

Even in the best of times, the stock market looks out six months to a year. Right now, even seasoned pros can’t feel the bottom of the muck we’re in.

Many retirement savers are uncomfortable with their nest egg tied up largely in stocks. That’s just the direction where the system of IRAs and 401(k)s — which also advances Wall Street’s interests — shepherds them.

Real-estate cycles generally run in decade-or-so swings and this one may not yet have neared its bottom. Housing values could drop another 10% to 20%, but the stock market also could drop further and take a decade to well surpass its previous highs.

Especially for those in or near retirement, buying a property that produces rental income that’s likely to increase with inflation is as sound a long-term investment as any TV commentator or investing guru might offer.

3. Purchasing a significantly undervalued asset

For investors willing to hang on to a property for five years or more, residential real estate today presents a tremendous opportunity to do just what investors ideally do — buy low and sell high.  In some of the hardest-hit regional markets nationwide, homes are selling for as little as 20% of their value in 2006. In the San Francisco Bay Area, for instance, a 3,400-square-foot, five-bedroom, three-bath house built in 2000 recently listed for $257,000 — after last selling for $795,000 just three years ago.

More importantly, at a cost of just $75 per-square-foot, that’s about a third of the new construction cost for a well-outfitted, single-family home in that region. An IRA buyer in that case would get a relatively new house that would require little maintenance — and a 7,000-square-foot lot essentially thrown in for free.

While that may be an extreme example, countless thousands of existing homes nationwide are selling for 50% of today’s construction and land costs. Putting aside previous overinflated values, that statistic illustrates how inexpensive home prices have become — and how much upside they offer in terms of appreciation when the real-estate market finally recovers.

4. A steady income generator

At a time when companies are slashing stock dividends at record rates, retirees can’t be assured of that income source. And with government bonds paying a pittance in terms of yield, that fixed-income stream is running mighty shallow.

Income from a rental property bought with a self-directed IRA flows back into the retirement account. The IRA holds title to the property and the income it produces can be directed into all manner of investments typically held within an IRA, be it stocks, bonds, mutual funds or money market accounts.

On a percentage basis, that income can be two to three times higher than today’s fixed-income offerings even after paying expenses such as property taxes and insurance. Meanwhile, the accountholder can eventually reap the potential appreciation of the underlying asset — the property — that the IRA owns.

For retirement savers needing to fund a child’s college costs, a rental property held in an IRA also can be a valuable source of funds. While money taken out of a traditional IRA is subject to income taxes, it doesn’t face early-withdrawal penalties if used for higher-education costs. And while financial advisers caution against using retirement funds to pay for college costs, the IRA owner still has upside potential on the property to count on and the income in years ahead.

5. A safer means to play the stock market

For those who don’t want to abandon potential stock-market returns, a rental home owned in an IRA still affords them the ability to invest in stocks.

Rental income funneled into stocks or stock mutual funds today will be buying shares at sharply reduced prices. Directing the proceeds of each monthly rent check into stocks or mutual-fund shares accomplishes the same “dollar-cost averaging” strategy that occurs when employees steer a fixed amount of every paycheck into their 401(k).

Over a 10- to 20-year period, the return that the rental income produces if plowed into stocks is rich icing on the cake, coming on top of the return provided by the rental income itself. 

6. The ability to flip real estate with no tax bite

Proceeds from selling an IRA-owned home roll back into the IRA without facing capital-gains taxes. To the contrary, an investor who buys and resells a property within a year with nonretirement funds faces a capital-gains levy.

Many foreclosed homes today are “distressed,” vandalized by angry departing owners who may have deferred maintenance due to tough times. They often ransack anything and everything not nailed down and many things that are, from lighting fixtures and kitchen appliances to furnaces and central-air conditioners, toilets and bathroom vanities.

Such properties — which can be found at most all price points — are among the cheapest on the market on a per-square-foot basis because the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and most private mortgage lenders won’t loan on homes deemed “uninhabitable.” That drastically reduces the potential buyer pool to just cash purchasers — and reduces the property values as a result.

Even homes needing only cosmetic fixes sell at a discount today because there are countless others available in move-in condition. If an IRA home buyer has enough in the account post-purchase to refit a home’s interior — whether it’s laying carpet and laminate flooring or upgrading a kitchen or bathroom — going the minor-rehab route can be a rewarding approach.

Buyers might choose to fix up the cheapest, distressed property in a solid neighborhood so it qualifies for a mortgage and then resell it. They also could improve upon it over several years with the rental income. Either way, it’s a potentially enriching value-add strategy.

The ultimate choice

The bottom line with buying rental properties with an IRA is that the investor retains a level of control over a tangible asset that he or she could never remotely attain in owning shares of a company or a mutual fund.

The question that bears asking: What will yield a better return in the next five to 10 years — shares of Microsoft, General Electric or Citigroup, or a modest rental home in a decent school district — selling for 30 cents on the dollar — whose value may soon be juiced by record-low mortgage rates and unprecedented tax breaks?

Chris Pummer is a former senior editor for MarketWatch and Bloomberg News and a reporter for such papers as the Los Angeles Times and San Jose Mercury News.

Click on the links to find Seaside Florida Foreclosures, Seaside Florida Short Sales, Seaside Florida  Homes For Sale,  Seaside Florida Condos For Sale

Also check out The Destin Real Estate News, 30A Real Estate News,  Panama City Beach Real Estate News, Destin Condo News.

JohnMoran

John Moran, an award winning realtor at Keller Williams Realty, specializes in investment properties including beach front condos, second homes and residential land. He ranks in the top 1-1/2% of all realtors in the MLS for sales in 2007, 2008 & 2009. For more information about Destin Area real estate including Destin Foreclosures call or text John Moran at 850-217-7618.

What impact do you think this will this have on the area?

The St. Joe Company and Southwest Airlines announced a strategic alliance providing for the commencement of air service to Northwest Florida’s new international airport near Panama City Beach, Florida in May 2010.

Southwest Airlines is bringing low fares and excellent  service to the Emerald Coast just in time for the …

2010 summer vacation season! Southwest’s entry into the Panama City market will make it more accessible and affordable for people in other states to enjoy sugar-white-sand beaches, incredibly gentle blue waters, and an amazing variety of visitor accommodations that Northwest Florida has to offer. You can start booking your tickets on December 2009, there will be eight flights a day to and from four cities with a daily capacity of 2000 passengers. They have not yet announced specific schedules or which cities will be serviced by direct flights.

Bill Owen – Lead Planner in the Schedule Planning Department for Southwest Airlines said “If you’ve never visited the Panama City area, believe me, you have an incredible treat in store.  I’m already planning my family’s vacation there next summer.”

How do you think Southwest coming to the area will affect Seaside Florida Real Estate?

To learn more about Seaside Florida Real Estate go to:

Seaside Florida Homes For Sale

Seaside Florida Foreclosures

For more information on the areas go to At The Beach Destin,  At The Beach FL for South Walton County or At The Beach Panama City.

JohnMoran

John Moran, an award winning realtor at Keller Williams Realty, specializes in investment properties including beach front condos, second homes and residential land. He ranks in the top 1-1/2% of all realtors in the MLS for sales in 2007, 2008 & 2009. For more information about Destin Area real estate including Destin Foreclosures call or text John Moran at 850-217-7618.

Seaside Florida Home, Condo and Land owners are you curious about what has sold in the 3rd quarter and what is currently for sale in your neighborhood?

Check out out our Seaside Florida FREE QUARTERLY REPORTS where we answer:

• What is selling in Seaside Florida?
• How much are people getting for their Seaside Florida properties?
• How long is it  taking to sell Seaside Florida property right now?
• What is currently for sale right now in Seaside Florida?

To get the answers to these questions and more simply download our Seaside Florida Free Quarterly Reports that show …

you the highest, lowest and average price of the homes, condos and land sold in your neighborhood durring the third quarter of 2009.    Find out average days on market, and average price per square feet.  What is for sale in Seaside Florida and much more.

This report is completely free! Simply go to Seaside Florida Real Estate Sales Report now.

If you own or are considering buying Seaside Real Estate , or Watercolor Real Estate, or Sandestin Real Estate or Destin Real Estate in general start your research here.

For more information about Destin Real Estate For Sale contact Keller Williams Realty’s At The Beach Team today.

JohnMoran

John Moran, an award winning realtor at Keller Williams Realty, specializes in investment properties including beach front condos, second homes and residential land. He ranks in the top 1-1/2% of all realtors in the MLS for sales in 2007, 2008 & 2009. For more information about Destin Area real estate including Destin Foreclosures call or text John Moran at 850-217-7618.

Golf Digest writer Peter Finch comes to Seaside to explore golf at the beach.

In the November issue of Golf Digest Magazine writer Peter Finch talks about his visit to Seaside this past summer for a family vacation. He mentions that there are more than a dozen golf courses within an hour of Seaside with the heaviest concentration in Destin, where there is the Sandestin Resort has four (three of them with 4-1/2 stars in Golf Digest’s Best Places to Play reader ratings). …

Courses Played

The writer said he played Shark’s Tooth, Camp Creek and Origins. Shark’s Tooth, a Greg Norman design that Golf Digest ranks as the eight-best in all of Florida was his favorite.

He talks about “The Truman Show” where Truman and his buddy Marlon are hitting golf balls into the distance and Truman says that he would like to get out and explore the world and Marlon says,

“Where is there to go?” “I went all over. I never found a place like this, though.”

When you think about it – Seaside, Golf and the beach – there aren’t too many places like this. Check out article and see what esle Mr. Finch has to say about the area.

Second Home / Golf / Beach

If you have ever thought about having a second home at the beach to get away from the winter blues and play golf now might be your time. There are plenty of great deals on golf course homes, golf course condos and golf course land so take a few minutes and click on the links to look at all golf course properties currently for sale including foreclosures and short sales.

Seaside Florida Real Estate 

Seaside Florida is very close to many great golf courses making it one of the most desirable communities on 30A. Check out

Seaside Florida  Homes For Sale

Seaside Florida Condos For Sale

Seaside Florida Forclosures

If you have any questions give us a call at 850-654-3325 or send us an email at JohnMoran@AtTheBeachTeam.com

JohnMoran

John Moran, an award winning realtor at Keller Williams Realty, specializes in investment properties including beach front condos, second homes and residential land. He ranks in the top 1-1/2% of all realtors in the MLS for sales in 2007, 2008 & 2009. For more information about Destin Area real estate including Destin Foreclosures call or text John Moran at 850-217-7618.

Seaside Land Sales – Second Quarter, 2009

• Total Number of Seaside Land Sold: 2
• Highest Price for a Seaside Land Sold: 3,200,000
• Lowest Price for a Seaside Land Sold: 3,200,000
• Average Price for a Seaside Land Sold: 3,200,000
• Average Price Per Sq. Ft. for a Seaside Land Sold: $1,242.25
• Average Days On Market for a Seaside Land Sold: 0

There you go- these sold numbers give you a pretty good idea of what buyers are willing to pay in the current market now let’s take a look at what sellers are asking this month.
Seaside Land For Sale

Ok let’s take a look at what is currently for sale in Seaside.

• Total Number of Seaside Land For Sale: 39
• Highest List Price for a Seaside Land For Sale: $6,200,000
• Lowest List Price for a Seaside Land For Sale: $890,000
• Average List Price for a Seaside Land For Sale: $2,244,692
• Average Price Per Sq. Ft. for a Seaside Land For Sale: $1,196
• Average Number of Days On Market for a Seaside Land For Sale: 527
• Total Number of Seaside Land Foreclosures and Shorts Sales: 0

As you can see it’s a great time to be a buyer of Seaside Land For Sale and you can easily search all of them on the At The Beach website. You can also sign up for the Seaside Foreclosures and Short Sale Alert and receive an email every time a new property comes up as a Foreclosure or Short Sale.

JohnMoran

John Moran, an award winning realtor at Keller Williams Realty, specializes in investment properties including beach front condos, second homes and residential land. He ranks in the top 1-1/2% of all realtors in the MLS for sales in 2007, 2008 & 2009. For more information about Destin Area real estate including Destin Foreclosures call or text John Moran at 850-217-7618.

With foreclosures, bank owned properties, and short sales at a record high finding the best deal for you can be a bit confusing!

As your local real estate expert in I can tell you that there are a ton of properties for sale right now – some of them are great deals and a lot of them aren’t – so let me act as a guide to direct you to the best investment opportunities based on your financial goals.

One way to get a great deal on real estate is though foreclosures and Short Sales which you can search Destin at http://www.atthebeachdestin.com/search-destin-mls.php or South Walton County at http://www.atthebeachfl.com/search-beach-mls.php

Call me today and will show you how I have helped other buyers and investors just like you find their great deals.

admin

Seaside Home Sales – Second Quarter, 2009

• Total Number of Seaside Homes Sold: 2
• Highest Price for a Seaside Home Sold: 3,200,000
• Lowest Price for a Seaside Home Sold: 3,200,000
• Average Price for a Seaside Home Sold: 3,200,000
• Average Price Per Sq. Ft. for a Seaside Home Sold: $1,242.25
• Average Days On Market for a Seaside Home Sold: 0

There you go- these sold numbers give you a pretty good idea of what buyers are willing to pay in the current market now let’s take a look at what sellers are asking this month.
Seaside Homes For Sale

Ok let’s take a look at what is currently for sale in Seaside.

• Total Number of Seaside Homes For Sale: 39
• Highest List Price for a Seaside Home For Sale: $6,200,000
• Lowest List Price for a Seaside Home For Sale: $890,000
• Average List Price for a Seaside Home For Sale: $2,244,692
• Average Price Per Sq. Ft. for a Seaside Home For Sale: $1,196
• Average Number of Days On Market for a Seaside Home For Sale: 527
• Total Number of Seaside Home Foreclosures and Shorts Sales: 0

As you can see it’s a great time to be a buyer of Seaside Homes For Sale and you can easily search all of them on the At The Beach website. You can also sign up for the Seaside Foreclosures and Short Sale Alert and receive an email every time a new property comes up as a Foreclosure or Short Sale.

admin

Looking back on the month of May I can tell you that sale’s dropped in Seaside so let’s take a closer look at what sold and what is currently for sale.

• Seaside Home Sales – May, 2009
  Total Number of Seaside Homes Sold: 0
  Highest Price for a Seaside Home Sold: $0
  Lowest Price for a Rose Seaside Home Sold: 0
  Average Price for a Seaside Home Sold: 0
  Average Days On Market for 0
  Average Price Per Sq. Ft. for a Seaside Home Sold: 0

There you go- these sold numbers give you a pretty good idea of what buyers are willing to pay in the current market now let’s take a look at what sellers are asking this month.

Seaside Homes For Sale

Ok let’s take a look at what is currently for sale in Seaside.

• Total Number of Seaside Homes For Sale: 41
• Highest List Price for a Seaside Home For Sale: $6,200,000
• Lowest List Price for a Seaside Home For Sale: $890,000
• Average List Price for a Seaside Home For Sale: $2,294,829
• Average Price Per Sq. Ft. for a Seaside Home For Sale: 1188
• Total Number of Seaside Home Foreclosures and Shorts Sales: 0

As you can see it’s a great time to be a buyer of Seaside Homes For Sale and you can easily search all of them on the At The Beach Fl website. You can also sign up for the Seaside Foreclosures and Short Sale Alert and receive an email every time a new property comes up as a Foreclosure or Short Sale on the Seaside Real Estate News.

JohnMoran

John Moran, an award winning realtor at Keller Williams Realty, specializes in investment properties including beach front condos, second homes and residential land. He ranks in the top 1-1/2% of all realtors in the MLS for sales in 2007, 2008 & 2009. For more information about Destin Area real estate including Destin Foreclosures call or text John Moran at 850-217-7618.