Archive for the 'Pensacola Real Estate News' Category
How the Pensacola Real Estate Mortgage Market Has Changed
February 17th, 2010 Categories: Credit And Financing, Pensacola Real Estate News
In this article, I will take a look at the changes in mortgages used to purchase Pensacola real estate over the past several years.
In looking at the table above, it is pretty clear that the use of conventional mortgages for real estate purchases is declining in favor of FHA and Veteran’s Administration (VA) mortgages. It is no surprise that conventional mortgages are not as popular as they were only 2 years ago. The standard for a conventional mortgage is a 20% down payment. In previous years, many conventional mortgages were being issued with 10% down or no money down at all. Often the mortgage would require 20% down, and the borrower would borrow the 20% down payment in the form of a 2nd mortgage.
Notice in the table that the use of FHA mortgages have more than doubled in the past 2 years. VA loans have tripled! I believe that the increase in VA loans is unique to markets where there is a strong military presence, such as the Pensacola real estate market. Without our local military bases, the Pensacola area would be an economic disaster area. Thank goodness for our local veterans and active duty military who are buying Pensacola homes for sale and staying in Pensacola.
Most of the Pensacola military personnel who work out of the Pensacola Naval Air station choose to live in Southwest Pensacola, in subdivisions such as South Bay, Coral Creek, and Emerald Shores. These beautiful neighborhoods provide fast easy access to Pensacola NAS and Corry Field.
Data for the table was provided by the Pensacola Association of Realtors, and is deemed reliable, but not guaranteed.
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Pensacola Real Estate News Report On Toxic Chinese Drywall
February 15th, 2010 Categories: Home Inspections, Pensacola Real Estate News
News about potentially toxic Chinese drywall started being reported in early 2009. What effect the defective drywall will have on the Pensacola real estate market is still unknown, as we don’t know how many Pensacola homes for sale may be affected by Chinese drywall. It was initially reported that the problem was isolated to a few homes in Miami, Florida. However, as the story developed, it appeared to be a much larger problem that could affect homeowners all across Florida and the Gulf Coast.
According to America’s Watchdog Homeowner Consumer Center, “the potentially toxic Chinese dry wall was used all over the entire state of Florida, in Georgia, in the Carolinas and in all Gulf Coast states. We are particularly worried about New Orleans, because we lost so many houses there during and after Katrina. At the time I lived in New Orleans and I know how hard it was to get sheet rock, so we are 100% certain it’s in New Orleans on a large scale.”
Note to all consumers throughout the nation: “The Homeowners Consumer Center is convinced the potentially toxic Chinese dry wall is not limited to the US Southeast, or the Gulf states. If you have a home that was built or remodeled in 2005 to 2008 that has a strong sulphur smell, or a rotten egg type smell please contact the Homeowners Consumer Center at 866-714-6466.”
What are the signs your house might have the potentially toxic imported Chinese dry wall?
First the house was built or remodeled between 2005 and 2008
The house has a strong or noticeable smell of sulphur or rotten eggs.
The home has experienced repeated air conditioning coil issues or corrosion
The home’s occupants have experienced upper respiratory issues, nose bleeds, or other medical issues.
Young children or senior citizens may be the first to show signs of exposure to a home with the imported Chinese dry wall.
Lawsuits are currently in process in South Florida over the drywall issue. I will report on developments in these lawsuits here on Pensacola Real Estate News.
The good news is that we have home inspectors in the Pensacola area that have been trained on how to look for evidence of Chinese drywall. A home inspector I spoke to told me that there are many signs that will give away the presence of the drywall. He had been to Chinese drywall detection seminars and felt confident he could determine if a home had the bad drywall installed.
For more information on Chinese drywall and updated news reports, visit http://helpchinesedrywall.com/
Even if there is no concern about Chinese drywall, every buyer should have a home inspection, no exceptions. You never know what the inspector might find. ( See Redneck Ingenuity Makes Home Inspections a Must )
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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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