2009 In Pensacola Real Estate
February 7th, 2010 Categories: Pensacola Real Estate News
What happened in Pensacola real estate in 2009? Here are summaries of some of the bigger stories in real estate for 2009, especially those that had an effect on the local market.The obvious big story is the economic slow down, which is affecting real estate all over the country, not just in Pensacola. That story is covered extensively in the media, so I’ll skip writing about that. It’s not much fun to write about anyway and we all know it is bad.
The Strengthening Real Estate Market
According to the Florida Realtors sales reports, residential home sales have increased statewide in 2009. We have also seen an increase in Pensacola homes for sale, especially in the latter part of 2009. That is good news.I will continue to publish updates throughout the coming year on the Pensacola real estate market because the future performance of our market is not clear right now. With the extension of the home buyer tax credit, the Pensacola real estate market should remain strong at least through April of 2010. However, we are also looking at the possibility of many new foreclosures as more adjustable-rate mortgages readjust in 2010. We might also be looking at mortgage rate increases in the near future.
Credit Issues
Real estate agents I’ve spoken to the past year are all lamenting the same problem. They have clients who want to buy homes, and there are plenty of well-priced homes on the market, but the banks are being real tight about lending out the money. The supply of mortgage money and the strict underwriting rules have prevented many seemingly qualified home buyers from obtaining a mortgage. I believe the stricter lending rules were the biggest factor holding back the growth of the local real estate market.Don’t even waste your time trying for a conventional loan unless you have 20% cash for a downpayment. These stricter guidelines resulted in a resurgence in applications for FHA loans, which require only a 3.5% downpayment. Additionally, Pensacola is blessed with many military and ex-military citizens who are eligible for VA loans. That at least kept the market afloat, along with a few other factors as discussed in a previous Pensacola Real Estate News article. According to the Florida Association of Realtors, banks are beginning to loosen up some loan restrictions and money is starting to flow, but only for residential loans, and not to the extent needed to really infuse life into the real estate market.
State Farm Decides To Stay In Florida
Insurance has been another intriguing story of 2009, especially as it applies to State Farm. I personally have insurance with State Farm, and they have been very good to me. I was very happy with the way they handled damage after hurricane Ivan back in 2004, although I heard from others who were not so happy in their dealings with State Farm. I did feel a bit betrayed when I found out they were leaving the Florida market because Florida insurance regulators refused to allow State Farm a ridiculous rate hike of 47%. State Farm already cancelled policies of all home owners who lived within a mile of the water, which means they effectively left Gulf Breeze.
However, State Farm also needed the approval of regulators to leave the state, and this caused conflict on how best to handle the exit. Finally, on Dec. 16, 2009, the Florida Department of Insurance announced an agreement: State Farm would stay. It could drop no more than 125,000 policies and raise rates only 14.8 percent. Wow, only 14.8%. Sounds like State Farm customer came out real winners on this deal. I guess it is better than getting dumped and having no choice but to pay for insurance through Citizens Insurance. I’ll monitor the insurance situation and report on anything of interest that develops.
I previously reported on my dislike of the tactics of Allstate. I still cringe when I see their commercials. Check out my article Allstate to Pay Fine
Chinese Drywall Disaster
Yet another disaster caused by the Chinese manufacturing process has hit Florida hard. They’ve threatened the health of our children with lead paint based toys, killed our pets with tainted dog food, and now they are ruining our homes and our health with bad drywall. We are paying a big price for getting cheap products from overseas. I’d like to see America start producing quality products again, but with our Walmart mentality, look for more defective products coming your way (end of rant).
From 2005-2007, the U.S. imported defective drywall from China. It smelled bad, corroded metal, and caused health
problems. It has not yet been determined how many homes had this defective drywall installed, but the numbers will likely be in the tens of thousands. Lawsuits are also in process right now over this disaster. I feel for the poor families who thought they were purchasing a quality-built new home only to find out they had purchased a home that had to be gutted just to be habitable.
Unfortunately, there wasn’t a lot of good news for real estate in 2009. Let’s hope 2010 is brighter. Check back at Pensacola Real Estate News for continuing updates.
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The Up Side Of the Pensacola Economy
February 5th, 2010 Categories: Pensacola Real Estate News
Baptist Health Care has recently secured financing for the construction of several more operating rooms and support facilities at its main location. These new additions will bring construction jobs, and eventually new clinical and support jobs, numbering more than a hundred, and possibly several hundred more before the expansion is complete. That kind of employment growth should have a measurable impact on the Pensacola Historic District neighborhoods of North Hill, which is just east of Baptist Hospital and East Hill.
The concentration of good paying jobs in those areas has already been fueling a steady increase in the number of downtown Pensacola entertainment locations and restaurants. The Will Call sports grill, Hopjacks Pizza, The Ragtime Grill, Blazzues Jazz and Blues Bar and others have opened in the last couple of years. They have been a welcome addition to New York Nicks, Intermissions, the Fish House restaurant, Atlas Oyster Bar, Hub Stacey’s and, the largest and oldest nightlife complex in downtown Pensacola, Seville Quarter (pictured above). The downtown area, that was normally quiet, and mostly uninhabited after dark only a few years ago, now has steady business late into the evening most nights of the week, and entertainment and food for almost any taste.
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Pensacola Is Cold
January 6th, 2010 Categories: Pensacola Pictures, Pensacola Real Estate News
I was hardly prepared for this weather. On New Year’s Eve I was enjoying beautiful warm weather and sunshine out on Pensacola Beach. To me, it signaled a great start to a new year, weatherwise at least.
But then Pensacola (and much of the country) got hit with intensely cold temperatures. Now I’m not suggesting that these temperatures are unusual for Pensacola this time of year, but it is unusual for it to be this cold for this long.
Weather Underground (my favorite weather site) is showing water temperatures in the mid 40’s. I’m assuming these temperatures are being taken in the bay somewhere, since I know the Gulf is not that cold. Check out this site if you haven’t been there before. You can get radar, forecasts, individual weather station data for stations throughout the area, marine forecasts, tides, astronomy, area photographs and so much more. This site is to weather info what the MLS is to real estate.
The freezing temperatures have made for some beautiful sights. Here are a couple of pictures I took of the fountain at Asbury Place Assisted Living Facility in West Pensacola. The Pensacola News Journal is actually going to publish a picture of this fountain on Thursday, but remember, you saw it here first! (Like I’m sure you care).
The picture above was taken a dusk on Tuesday. And then when Wednesday morning came, look at the difference (below).
While the temps are subfreezing, the Pensacola Real Estate Market seems to be heating up. I’m seeing a large increase in properties being listed in the Pensacola MLS, as many sellers tend to start listing after the holiday season. And home prices are better than they have been in many years.
Look for more detailed market reports in future posts here on Pensacola Real Estate News. For now, I’m going to kick back and stay warm.
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The Condo Market Upswing On Pensacola’s Beaches
January 5th, 2010 Categories: Pensacola Beach, Pensacola Market Data
The Pensacola Beach, Navarre Beach, and Perdido Key condominium markets have begun to see some increase in sales. The total number of sales for these three areas, two of which are on Santa Rosa Island and the third on Perdido Key have increased from 211 units sold in 2008 to 298 units sold in 2009 for an almost 30% increase. During the same period average price per unit dropped from $566,000 to $383,000.The continuation of near historically low interest rates, and the falling prices are getting the attention of many more buyers.
I provided a report on the condo and beach real estate market back in mid-2008. You can check out that real estate condo report to get an idea of just how much prices have dropped and sales have increased in 2009.
Pensacola Beach’s core area has returned to its pre-hurricane Ivan condition, and actually has more to offer than ever. Most of the year there are 5 to 10 venues with live entertainment and a wide variety of restaurants including everything from fine dining at Hemmingway’s at the end of the Portofino Boardwalk, to Hooters, to Sidelines Sports bar.
The newly rebuilt Pensacola Beach fishing pier is back for fishing as well as sightseeing. The road to Fort Pickens has reopened, along with the road through the national seashore that connects Pensacola Beach with Navarre Beach. The picture below is a view of Pensacola Beach from the pier.
All of the annual events that take place on Pensacola Beach have resumed, bigger and better than ever, including the Blue Angels air show, and the world famous Pensacola Beach bushwhacker festival, as well as the huge Pensacola Beach Memorial Day celebration.
Here is the schedule of events for January through March from the Pensacola Bay Area Chamber of Commerce:
January 5, 2010
January
Annual Polar Bear Dip, Flora-Bama, (850) 492-0611
Navarre Half Marathon 5K/10K, (850) 476-7434
All American Chili Cookoff, Seville Quarter, (850) 434-6211
Youth Art Focus, Pensacola Museum of Art, (850) 432-6247
Annual Antique Show & Sale, Fairgrounds
February
Pensacola News Journal Double Bridge Run, 15K/5K, (850) 434-2800
Mardi Gras Street Party, Seville Quarter, (850) 434-6211
Mardi Gras Parades
Blue Angel Marathon
Cajun Fest, Pensacola Beach, (850) 932-1500
Heart of Gold Ball, American Heart Association, (850) 473-0411
Mardi Gras Parade, Pensacola Beach, (850) 932-1500
Lust for the Arts, Seville Quarter, (850) 434-6211
Gumbo Ya-Ya, Seville Quarter, (850) 434-6211
Pensacola Children’s Chorus, (850) 434-7760
March
Beulah Sausage Festival
Business Expo at Civic Center, (850) 438-4081
McGuire’s 5K Run, (850) 433-6789
Rockabilly Festival, Seville Quarter, (850) 434-6211
Pensacola Junior League Bargain Sale, (850) 433-4421
Santa Rosa Celebrates the Arts, (850) 623-2339
Magnolias and White Linen, (850) 435-2533
Gulf Coast Renaissance Festival, (877) 429-8462
Riverwalk Fine Arts Festival, Milton, (850) 626-9567, (850) 623-8493
Gulf Breeze Celebrates the Arts
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Pensacola Ends The Year With Gorgeous Weather
January 2nd, 2010 Categories: Pensacola Beach, Pensacola Pictures
You couldn’t ask for better weather to end the year. I spent some of my day of New Years Eve at Pensacola Beach. I took a few pictures which show just how beautiful the weather was. People were on the beach catching some sun, but only surfers were in the water, in full wet suits and boots. Air temps were in the upper 60’s, but water temps were in the lower 60’s.
While you don’t see too many people in these shots, there were people all up and down Pensacola Beach enjoying the beautiful weather. These pictures were taken at the beach in front of the Portofino Condos.
These guys below were glad to get out of the cold water and onto the nice warm beach.
I would love a few more days like New Years Eve, but instead we are looking at lows in the 20’s for the coming week. Brrrrrr!!!! Not very Florida-like. Hopefully the Pensacola Real Estate Market will warm up more than the weather.
But it appears what’s really hot on Pensacola Beach are the Portofino Condos. Since October 1, 2009 (the past 3 months), 27 units have sold, with an average price of $395,000. The average price per square foot was $254.
Compare these numbers to the end of 2008 when only 9 Portofino units sold in the same time frame, with an average price of $521,000 and an average price per square foot of $353. This is a huge change within a year’s time frame. More on Portofino later.
There are currently 176 active listings for condos on Pensacola Beach. That’s a lot less than the 279 active listings 2 years ago. Things are starting to normalize a little.
Related articles:
Pensacola Real Estate Market Data – October 2007
The Improving Pensacola Real Estate Market
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The Improving Pensacola Real Estate Market
December 29th, 2009 Categories: Pensacola Market Data
The Pensacola Real Estate market picked up nicely in November, driven by the $8000 tax credit for new home buyers, near historically low interest rates, and a continuing downward trend in home prices. Due to these factors, we saw a dramatic increase in homes sold in Pensacola in November 2009.
An estimated 441 homes sold in November 2009, vs around 265 in November 2008, according to the the Pensacola area MLS. Navy buyers, who will be stationed at one of our three Naval Air Stations, Pensacola NAS, Corry Field ,or NAS Whiting Field in Milton, Fl, have been a mainstay of the market and have found exceptional value for their money. Of course Veterans Administration (VA) loans are still readily available for Navy personnel, and we have a variety of sources for these VA loans, including local offices of Navy Federal Credit Union, as well as Bank of America, and Wachovia Bank, which is a subsidiary of Wells Fargo.
Another important part of the surge in Pensacola home sales has been the relative increase in buying power of the employees in our excellent medical facilities. Sacred Heart Health System, Baptist Health Care Systems Pensacola, and West Florida Hospital all contribute important jobs to our economy and, along with Navy and civil service employees, have been important in sustaining the Pensacola economy through these difficult economic times.
With the extension of the first-time home buyer tax credit and the added eligibility for a $6500 tax credit for other buyers, we are cautiously optimistic as we enter the new year that the Pensacola real estate market will continue to improve. One striking statistic is that the inventory of available homes continues to decrease in the Pensacola area. As of Dec 25th 2009, there were 4934 residential properties listed for sale in the Pensacola MLS.This is the first month we have had fewer than 5000 properties in the MLS in several years.That number along with the November 2009 sales number of 441 leads me to believe that the Pensacola Real Estate market is approaching a stabilization of supply and demand.
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Report Says Consumers Need To Better Understand Their Credit Scores
September 25th, 2008 Categories: Credit And Financing
Americans can save billions of dollars annually on credit card and other interest payments by raising their credit scores, but many consumers still don’t know enough about the complex numerical values that represent their credit risk.
According to the consumer group Consumer Federation Of America, public awareness of credit scores has improved but is still poor.
Although awareness of credit scores has increased in the past year, it remains poor, the Consumer Federation of America and Seattle-based bank Washington Mutual Inc. found in an annual survey released Thursday.
Given the participation of Washington Mutual, also knowns as WaMu, you would think they really care about the consumer and want to save you money.
One of my favorite bloggers, Karen George, has a different take on WaMu. If you are considering doing business with them, I would read her articles Once Again, WaMu Screws Me and Preditory Banking On A Smaller Friendlier Scale
To learn more about exactly what a credit score is, refer to my article “What Is A FICO Score “.
FICO scores are used by banks and insurance companies to determine rates for mortgage loans, credit cards, auto loans and other financing. Utilities, landlords and employers also check credit scores. Lower credit scores can cost you in many ways.
To learn more about how you can increase your overall wealth by improving your credit score, check out Your Credit Score – The Key To Building Your Future Wealth .
One way to raise a credit score is to avoid charging above the maximum limit on a credit card, or coming close to the limit, the study said.
However, many credit card issuers have recently cut limits on many cards to reduce their credit risks. These reductions can hurt credit scores because they are based partly on the amount a consumer has on a card compared to its overall limit.
For example, if you have charged $4,000 on a card with a $10,000 limit, the “utilization rate” is 40 percent. But if a card issuer reduces the limit to $5,000, that bumps your utilization rate up to 80 percent. Bad for you, but good for them. Isn’t that just business in America these days.
The Consumer Federation recommends credit card users keep the utilization rates below 50 percent, said Stephen Brobeck, executive director of the group.
To improve their credit scores, consumers should also avoid opening multiple new accounts quickly, and pay off debt rather than moving it around, the study said.
Look for upcoming articles on Pensacola Real Estate News regarding ways to improve your credit scores.
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Pensacola Real Estate News Weekly Market Report for Week Ending September 6, 2008
September 22nd, 2008 Categories: Pensacola Real Estate News
Pensacola Real Estate Market Data
Weekly Update For Residential Listings
In Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties
Here is another weekly Pensacola real estate market report. This one covers the week of August 31 – September 6, 2008.
This is my first weekly report in several weeks, so I added the weeks in the August 24th through September 6 timeframe to catch up. I’d like to say the Pensacola real estate market has been keeping me too busy to write blog posts, but that is not the case. Other issues have required my time, but hopefully I’ll be back on track here soon.
We saw a hopeful ending to August with 160 sales and a large drop in the inventory of homes on the market. But my overall monthly Pensacola real estate sales data for August was not as bright.
We’re in the middle of hurricane season right now, so buying real estate can be tricky when there is an active storm in the area. Hurricane Ike did nothing to help people feel better about moving to the Gulf Coast. As many of us remember the destruction wreaked upon Pensacola by hurricane Ivan in 2004, we can imagine the devestation and misery in Galveston right now. Also look for repercussions in the insurance industry.
If you are interested in sales of homes in different areas of Pensacola, check out my Pensacola Real Estate Market Report By Area post which breaks out the sales by different areas Northwest Florida.
- The table shows the weekly market data for Pensacola residential property.
- These numbers include only residential homes and condominiums in Escambia County and Santa Rosa County that are listed in the Pensacola MLS.
- They do not include vacant land or lots, mobile homes or manufactured homes or Pensacola FSBOs.
- The numbers above are created using data from the Pensacola MLS and are deemed reliable but not guaranteed
Click on Pensacola Real Estate News for a list of articles indexed by category.
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Pensacola Real Estate News Monthly Market Update for August 2008
September 18th, 2008 Categories: Pensacola Real Estate News
Pensacola Market Data For August 2008
Residential Properties in
Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties
The table shows the Pensacola real estate market data for the month of August 2008, as compared to previous months. Pensacola home sales have not reached the level they did in the previous 4 months. And the average sold price is also down a bit. And, the average days on market (DOM) has increased quite a bit. All bad!
As my regular readers may have noticed, I haven’t published much real estate news in the past month or so. I’m sorry for the lack of reports, but I had an illness in the family and haven’t been able to get my blogging time in. Hopefully that will get better here soon.
But as you can see from the table, very little has changed in the Pensacola real estate market, and most small changes have not been for the better. I was hoping for some brighter numbers, but it seems to be business as usual. We have seen the inventory of homes drop by a few hundred, which is good.
Now that we are seeing this massive financial crisis, I can only guess that the local real estate market is going to slow down even more. I’m thinking we are going to have a very slow fall and winter. This is bad news for local home sellers, but buyers should be able to have their pick of the bargains, assuming they can get a home loan.
Keep checking back for my weekly and monthly updates to keep abreast of what is going on in this market.
If you are interested in sales of homes in different areas of Pensacola, check out my Pensacola Real Estate Market Report By Area post which breaks out the sales by different areas Northwest Florida.
- The table shows the monthly market data for Pensacola residential property.
- These numbers include only residential homes and condominiums in Escambia County and Santa Rosa County that are listed in the Pensacola MLS.
- The numbers do not include vacant land or lots, mobile homes or manufactured homes.
- The numbers are generated using data from the Pensacola MLS and are deemed reliable but not guaranteed
Click on Pensacola Real Estate News for a list of articles indexed by category.
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Restaurant Chains Looking To Expand Into The Mobile Alabama Area
September 7th, 2008 Categories: Local Stories
Mobile Alabama is getting a lot of attention these days.
I have been trying to keep up with the ever-changing saga of the U.S. Air Force tanker contract war between Boeing and Northrop Grumman. If you haven’t heard, Boeing protested the awarding of the contract to Northrop Grumman
See Pensacola Real Estate News article Boeing Wins Air Force Tanker Award Protest
Next, the Pentagon decided the Air Force could not competently handle the bidding and award process and took it upon themselves to handle the rebid process. The Pentagon recently issued a revised set of criteria for the award. These criteria appear to favor the Northrop Grumman plane (Good for Mobile), and thus Boeing is crying foul on these criteria and trying to push the bidding process into the next presidential administration.
The Pentagon, however, has insisted that the contract will be awarded by the end of the year.
Note that the real losers in this game are our men and women in uniform who desperately need these new airplanes. This seems to be lost on the companies, and on Congress.
Either way, this contract dispute has attracted a lot of attention for Mobile Alabama. Real estate is in high demand.
See Pensacola Real Estate News article Mobile Alabama Needs Real Estate
Now, according to the Alabama Press Register, many restaurant chains are looking into expanding their businesses into Mobile.
Some of the names mentioned were Dunkin, Einstein Bros Bagels, Quiznos, Baskin-Robbins, Jimmy John’s sandwiches, Roly Poly, Zoe’s Kitchen and Cheeburger Cheeburger. In the Alabama Press article they state “Many fast-casual restaurateurs feel Mobile is the perfect fit, thanks in large part to the economic growth expected in the near future.”
James Franks, national director of franchising for Baskin-Robbins, has said the company likes the demographics in Mobile and Baldwin counties, calling the area home to plenty of working professionals and families. “It’s very simple — the people are there, and we don’t just appeal to one demographic. In a tight economy, consumers like a quality product that doesn’t break the bank.”
“Even if (the tanker assembly plant) doesn’t come to Mobile, the area is still continuing to grow and becoming a major force within our region,” said George Waldron, who has directed the opening of 32 Quiznos in the four-state Gulf Coast area in the past 11-plus years.
While Pensacola is not the target for any major industries or contracts, we can at least hope for some spillover from Mobile’s economic growth into our area. It is too bad that our local leaders cannot seem to get along well enough to do anything productive for our area.
See Pensacola Real Estate News article about Mobile’s super economic growth: The Real News Is Next Door In Mobile .
Click on Pensacola Real Estate News for a list of articles indexed by category.
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