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Poinciana, FL Real Estate News

By Allison Stewart, St. Cloud Fl Realtor, Osceola County Real Estate 407-616-9904
(St.Cloud Homes )
The market has shifted over the past 3 months DRAMATICALLY and the supply is dwindling rapidly.  Prices are based on supply and demand.  Demand is high and supply is lower than previously reported. Good homes attract multiple offers as many buyers have experienced and unfortunately trying to come in low is proving repeatedly to not be effective.  It has been 3 years since the market peaked.  Markets go in cycles -The market bottomed in December 2008. Which means it is gradually rising. HOW ARE BUYERS DETERMINING WHAT TO OFFER? The days on market is not a good gage of what price to offer-  when a seller falls behind, the lender may tell them to sell the house. The private seller HAS to list it usually at a price much higher than the bank will (when they take control to liquid it as a tox...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
Richard Zaretsky’s recent post.......... "WALK AWAY FROM THE PROPERTY - STRATEGIC MORTGAGE DEFAULTS GROW TO 26%" got me thinking. His post is talking about the amount of people who are making the "Strategic” decision to default on their mortgages. TheTruthAboutMortgage.com site had this  to say about the topic.“A new survey conducted by the Kellogg School of Management in Chicago suggests that more than a quarter of mortgage defaults are strategic, especially when negative equity exceeds 15 percent.”Some of the comments on Richard’s post were calling this a moral issue. As in “It is morally wrong to strategically default on your mortgage”.So…….my question is…“Is deciding to default on your mortgage, or not, a moral issue?”Here are my thoughts: "Strategic Defaults" are rampant in my area...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
Hi folks. A few months ago I had  Sellers call me who had just received notice that their property was being sold at auction in 10 days. Of course they wanted to know if I could help. As the good little Broker that I am I said “Maybe”. I asked a few qualifying questions and found out the property was: Purchased as a “flip” that flopped. They had a first Mortgage with 1st  Horizon and a 2nd with Etrade. The mortgage balances totaled roughly $220,000 and the property was worth about $60,000. The Sellers had recently divorced. One was in California and the other was in China. The biggest obstacle of course was the auction date barreling down on us. Both Sellers would have to get me their financial information very quickly AND we would need to find a Buyer…… yesterday.So my question is…….....
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
Hi folks,. I sell a lot of properties sight unseen over the Internet. Including this one. Of course it's prudent to go have a look before the final paper work is signed. If not.....well......you may end up with this '"Needs  TLC" property.   Beautiful Foreclosure "For Sale"   Hard wood flooring throughout. Very open and roomy kitchen. His and Her "Spickets" in the master bath. Reinforced storm windows AC pad included at no extra charge.   So what do you think? Need TLC or total Rehab needed?   CENTRAL FLORIDA REAL ESTATE SHORT SALE INFORMATION MAKE AN OFFER ON ANY  FLORIDA PROPERTY LISTINGS HERE MORE INFO FROM BROKER BRYANT... THE SOURCE FOR CENTRAL FLORIDA REAL ESTATE Copyright © 2009 http://www.brokerbryant.com/ | All Rights Reserved      
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
Hi folks. Today I have mixed emotions. Lenn Harley has a great featured post today basically showing how asinine our Government has been by throwing away trillions of dollars to bail out banks while ignoring the true issue……lack of equity.  According to Lenn (and I agree) we have an equity problem in this country. Until this problem is solved nothing else matters.Homeowners will need to move or want to move at some point and if they can’t sell because they owe too much they are stuck. So they are forced to make hard decisions. Some will stay and stick it out but I’m afraid many more will just walk away and let their homes be foreclosed on.In my opinion, this is going to be the next major waive of foreclosures. Right now it seems like things are starting to get better. In some of the har...
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By Darhlene Zeanwick
(Charles Rutenberg Realty Orlando, LLC)
Near Disney World, U.S.A. Just Listed in Crescent Lakes Meandering lighted sidewalks, morning jogs, moonlit walks, ponds, and manicured landscapes, Crescent Lakes offers style, security, and much more. Two parks, playground, basketball, picnic area and its own security patrol. Ideal for a residential Home to live in; rent out long-term; or short-term...' Get Linked Our Reciprocal Ad Program We are happy to link to web sites and blogs that reciprocate the favor. Check-out our Get Linked page for more information.' We Called It Back in January, we were able to use our statistical tracking of the Greater Poinciana area to show that the area was finally starting to come out of the housing-crisis woods. We're glad to report that the trend continues. We started at 80 homes in January to a hi...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
How cool is that? Let's jump right in to my Poinciana Market Report for March 2009. *****This report will encompass Poinciana Florida zip codes 34758 and 34759 excluding Solivita, Lake Marion Shores and Cypress Woods. This data was pulled form the Mid-Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service on 3-13-09.  Check it out. Inventory is DOWN to 812 properties. Thirty days ago there were 932 properties on the market. That's a decrease of 15%.  Now here's the biggie. There were 152 closings in March 2009. That's the highest amount of resale closings in a month.....EVER! That's EVER as in "We have NEVER had that many closings in any 30 day period since Poinciana was established in 1973".  Folks this is huge. Inventory is down and sales are way up. This is actually right in line with what you h...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
In the summer of ‘04, John and Sally fell in love. Both were in their late 20's and had recently gone through difficult divorces. Life being unpredictable, as it is, put them in each other's paths about one year prior. Since they were both going through difficult times, they hit it off immediately and moved in together. They lived up north in the big city and had always dreamed of moving to beautiful sunny Florida. They both had pretty good jobs, with Sally being an LPN and John working for a medical records company, this is actually how they met, but the living expenses in their area were too high. Purchasing a home together, in the city, was out of the question. One day, Sally received a nice brochure in the mail from a builder in Florida, Paradise Castles LLC, it was chock full of be...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
Folks look at what $90,000 will buy you in Kissimmee/Poinciana Florida. These were placed on the market this week and will not be around for long. Check 'em out. Beautiful home in excellent condition. Formal living room and formal dining room. Eat in kitchen opens to the family room. Inside utilities. Over 2000 sq ft living area with 4 bedrooms and 2.5 baths. Did I mention it was built in 2005? Great price!! Please only qualified buyers need apply. $89,000*** 3 bedrooms and 2 bath and........a POOL!! That's right folks an in ground swimming pool. Almost 1/2 acre lot. With a little TLC this would make an awesome property. Great Poinciana location within walking distance of the towne center. $89,000*** ***Listing price may not be sufficient to cover all encumbrances, closing costs, or oth...
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By Darhlene Zeanwick
(Charles Rutenberg Realty Orlando, LLC)
The Poinciana Crane     The NSP & Hospital Funding Posted: 13 Mar 2009 09:01 AM PDT The Osceola County Association of Realtors, OSCAR, gave Charlie Crist many thumbs-up for his support of Poinciana's recently approved 60-bed, acute care hospital. OSCAR reported that at a town meeting held at Valencia Community College, Crist told the crowd that -- if St. Cloud Hospital appeals the...' New Retail/Office in front of Lowe's Posted: 13 Mar 2009 08:45 AM PDT The Osceola County Association of Realtors, recently announced that Realcap Associates purchased a 3.71-acre site from Avatar at the intersection of Cypress Parkway and Southport. Apparently ground was broken on this new project. Groundbreaking for the project's second phase is expected before...' "Surviving Tough Times" Free Posted: 13...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
John MacArthur wrote a post yesterday expressing his disapproval of a Real Estate Company in his area that charges Short Sale Sellers a fee in addition to the commission. John’s opinion is that this is taking advantage of people. I thought his opinion was way off base. But hey…..that’s just my opinion. Go read his post and form your own.  My question to John was “Is it the fee or the amount of the fee that has you riled?” I asked this question for two reasons.  1. If it’s the AMOUNT of the fee then I would consider his opinion a possible violation of Sherman Anti-Trust Laws.  2. I list short sales AND I charge an upfront fee to my sellers. It's a very reasonable fee and they pay me prior to listing the property. I also charge a commission at time of closing.  For number one you can do y...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
Hi folks. Lately I have been selling quite a few REOs (banked owned) property. As you know if you deal in these properties the sellers (banks) always offer them for sell in "As Is" condition. No biggie since most of my Buyers are experienced Investors. "As Is" in Florida means As Is with right to inspect. This means the Buyer normally has 7-10 days to have the property inspected after a contract has been accepted and signed by all parties. If during this inspection the Buyer finds structural or mechanical issues that they weren't made aware of during negotiations the Buyer can cancel the contract and get their deposit back. In Florida, a Seller is obligated by law to disclose to a potential Buyer any material defects that the Buyer cannot readily see that affect the value of the proper...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
Hi folks. Last week I was invited by Jennifer Allen to participate on a teleconference on "How To Price Your Listings Right......With a Persuasive CMA". The teleconference was awesome and I believe we had close to 1,000 people listen in. Since then I have had numerous emails asking me questions about my CMA.  Instead of typing the same email response over and over again I thought I'd just post that particular part of my presentation here. So here you go. I hope it helps. ************************************************************ "I'M NOT HERE TO TELL YOU HOW MUCH YOUR HOME IS WORTH....I'M HERE TO TELL YOU WHAT IT WILL TAKE TO GET YOUR HOUSE SOLD." Preparing a Persuasive CMA First, I prepare a standard CMA using the format provided by my MLS. I'm sure you guys know what I'm talking abo...
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By Darhlene Zeanwick
(Charles Rutenberg Realty Orlando, LLC)
"Smart Change" Group Working to Expand How many reasons can we find for a "Smart Change" group in Poinciana? Let me count a few. We don't want: Poinciana referred to as a "ghost town," as "Angelina of Florida" describes our once bustling expanse of "Disney Preserve" real estate. The quality of our community to suffer from the long-term...REO Sold 113 Cheltenham Place, a pool home in Poinciana. Sold Date: 01/02/2009 Seller Credit: $4,800 in Poinciana's Village 2. List Price: $96,900 Sold Price: $98,500FL #1 in Fraud? Now more than ever, it's critically important to make sure that, when you work with professionals in the real estate industry, beware! According to The Impact of Mortgage Fraud On Florida, a report compiled by the National Association of Realtors (NAR), Florida ranks top 10,...
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By Darhlene Zeanwick
(Charles Rutenberg Realty Orlando, LLC)
Incorporating Poinciana - Take the Poll! The Association of Poinciana Villages recently hired the University of Central Florida to study the possibility of incorporating Poinciana as a city. What in your opinion would be the best form of future governance for Poinciana? Incorporation of Poinciana as a city. Establishing Poinciana as...CFD's Empower HOA's, Communities While the acronym sounds more like a virus, if it works, CFD's will likely be welcomed as beneficial to Osceola residents as bumble bees are to plants. Common facilities districts, or CFD's, have been implemented by two exclusive communities within the Greater Poinciana area so far: Crescent Lakes...Doubly Dipped Sales If you lost your home to foreclosure, listen up. Referring to a new bill that would restore the $50,000-pe...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
Purchasing a property over here is pretty straight forward. When you see something you like I prepare a 5 page written purchase offer with the price and terms you want to offer. This is presented to the sellers agent with proof of your ability to purchase i.e. bank statements, letter of credit or mortgage approval letter. Once the transaction is negotiated you will sign the final contact and place a deposit, usually $1,000 to $5,000 in escrow. That can be handled by wiring funds to the closing agent(title company) in Florida. All foreclosure properties are purchased "As Is" with right to inspect. This means that within 7 to 10 days of contract date you can have the property inspected(surveyed) to make sure it is structurally sound. The seller makes no warranties and and after the inspec...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
OK so my head is exploding today!!! So much going on and so many posts that need to be written. Including my year end market report for Poinciana Florida. But today I want to write about BBAs (Buyer Broker Agreements) and why they have never been more important that they are right now.  I expect I'll get all the usual responses about "My clients would NEVER buy a house behind my back" and "The commission doesn't matter to me". If you believe these things to be true this post may not be for you OR maybe it's EXACTLY for you!  This post gives one reason why a BBA should be important to the Buyer. In fact, it's my opinion, that a BBA is MORE important to the Buyer than it is to the REALTOR® and here‘s why.  I spoke with a Buyer, earlier this week, who has cash and is ready to buy. It seem...
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By Darhlene Zeanwick
(Charles Rutenberg Realty Orlando, LLC)
Hot for New Year Deals Find the Hottest Deals in January right now! The lowest price for an existing single-family home in Poinciana is now $32,500. We have great prices and foreclosure properties for sale throughout the greater Poinciana area, including Solivita, Crescent Lakes, and Bellalago. To find your next best...' Just Listed Waterfront 52 Photos! Waterfront HomeOn Third-Acre with Fireplace on Cul-de-Sac With the greatest view in the neighborhood and on a third of an acre, this stunning custom-built family home could be yours with over $70,000 in savings! Now listed at $199,000. This home has many updated and remodeled features....' The Recovery's Landed Long before many realized that the housing bubble had burst in early 2006, I asked my broker at RE/MAX Executive Group what had...
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By Darhlene Zeanwick
(Charles Rutenberg Realty Orlando, LLC)
New Year's Wishes There is something to be said about the magic that is the holiday season in Central Florida. Warm enough to wear shorts, golf or fish and still have the twinkling lights of the holidays gracing our palm trees, evergreens, and wide and shady Live Oaks. For some, this season was the toughest ever...' Bella Poinciana to Join Bellalago If you've noticed activity at Poinciana's little elbow in the road, the one that turns Marigold Avenue into Poinciana Parkway, then imagine an upscale, mixed use, planned development named Bella Poinciana. This more than 1,000-acre gem, located adjacent to Village 8, is the future home to what has...' Sold in Village Two! Nearly new, bank-owned home with split-floor plan. Over 2,300 square feet of living space in Poinciana's Village Two. Fo...
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By Bryant Tutas, Selling Florida one home at a time
(Tutas Towne Realty, Inc and Garden Views Realty, LLC)
Hi folks, These are desperate times we are in. Some folks can do everything right and still find themselves in a bind. All we can do is give honest advice and let them make the decisions they need to make. THE SITUATION I am scared about refinancing now that the market is even worse.  I wonder if I should hold on to the money I was putting down on the house?Things have changed and my parents are now talking about moving out of Florida.If I listed this house for $129,000 fully furnished with all the new appliances, new furniture and shed do you think I could sell it? Buyer pays closing costs? That would give me back the house money, the money for the fence and pay the furniture and appliance bills.  Do you think it would come close? With the landscaping (which you haven't seen) and fence...
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