Moving South? Leaving the cold winter weather behind? You might want to consider bringing your houseplants with you. Chances are, they will grow happily outdoors and adorn your home in the Sunshine State.

I moved to Central Florida, aka Florida's Heartland in 2003 and I was amazed to see the vast amount of northern houseplants being used as year around landscaping plants in Florida:

Caladiums, Dragon Trees, Bromeliads, Boat Lilies, Poinsettias, Crotons - just to name a few.

Hint: if you like Caladiums, visit Lake Placid in August for the Annual Caladium Festival. Lake Placid is known as the Caladium Capital of the World as over 95% of all caladiums are actually grown here. You can get your hands on premium bulbs, buy mature plants or visit the caladium fields (bring the camera). Of course, there's also plenty of local food specialties, refreshments, arts & crafts available

Sebring REO / Foreclosures are moving fast! We have a daily updated foreclosure list on our website and a surprisingly high amount of subscribers (it's free!).

It's a pretty simple process: you can see the current foreclosure list on our website MillsRealEstate.net and you can also subscribe to daily updates, meaning as soon  as a new foreclosure hits the market, you get notified. The same goes for changes in price - you get notified! Everything is updated every morning. Pretty neat, isn't it?

During the last two months we've noticed that many times when people call us about a particular REO property that has just hit the market, it becomes "pending or contingent" within a very short time - meaning someone has made an offer on it already.

The time a REO / foreclosure property in Highlands County spends on the market until it receives an offer is considerably less than for short sales or fair market sales. The current average is only around 95 days, while fair market sales take around 144 days to sell. 

If you are shopping for foreclosures and you find a property in Sebring you are interested in, don't wait around! Call us immediately and ask for Darrin: 863-202-5017!

Double check before you move ahead!

The media has done its fair share of painting a picture of doom and gloom when it comes to the housing market. No, not everything is fine and dandy in real estate and depending on your area, there might be quite some shadow inventory lurking in the dark.

Nonetheless, FoxNews has a great article about very affordable homes throughout the country that can be purchased without having to wait out a short sale or deal with damaged REO properties: http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2011/04/17/cities-80000-buys-real-home/?test=faces

But before you move ahead, verify the information given:
A property for sale in Arizona, for example, was described as tiled throughout when the listing photos clearly show carpeting and the size of the property the article refers to is actually the lot size, not the home's square footage.

I couldn't help but comment on the article and set the record straight, at least for this particular home.

Even when it comes to the MLS, the data is not guaranteed accurate but deemed reliable. This means, there might be typos: A home listed for $100,000 shows up for $10. A home on 2 acres shows up as $20 acres. Before you move ahead, speak with your Realtor and have him or her verify the information given about a particular property.

Owner Financing Available! Many buyers have a hard time getting qualified for a mortgage these days. According to the Federal Reserve, nearly one quarter of mortgage appliants are being rejected.

FICO scores matter more than ever and many buyers might be looking towards Owner Financing as a way to purchase a property.

We recently spoke with a Polk County home owner looking to sell his beautiful golf front property. Before we met, we took the time to research the market and neighborhood and found that comparable homes haven't sold for more than $55,000 only a month ago. The seller sold us he had sold similar homes in 2005 for around $160,000 and would be looking to sell his current one within that price range. Wow, three times its market value.
We suggested he rent the place instead and wait until the market recovers. He then said  he would consider Owner Financing.  His terms seemed pretty reasonable and we liked the fact that he would be willing to help a financially stable buyer that wasn't able to qualify for a bank loan because of tight qualification criteria. What really bothered me was the fact that his Owner Financing didn't include a price reduction anywhere near what the property's current market value was.

In other words, the buyers would have to grossly overpay in order to do Owner Financing and by overpay I mean almost triple the market value. How great of a deal is that? Yes, the owner would give great terms on the loan, fair interest rate of 6% - wonderful but not so great anymore once you look at your monthly payment:

Market Value $60,000 at 6% over 30 years = about $360/mo

Owner's Market Value $150,000 at 6% over 30 years = $890/mo

Okay, let's assume the buyer is so desperate to own this home and doesn't mind that type of immensly inflated market value. 1 year after the closing, the owner gets laid off. He can't sell the home to get out from underneath the mortgage because the home hasn't appreciated enough by far. Now what?

Let's assume the buyers gets a great job offer and has to relocate but can't sell the home because...........yes, it hasn't appreciated enough by far. Now what?

Let's assume the buyers want to refinance after a year because their credit score has improved and their lender orders an appraisal..............not going to work either and you already know why.

Do your homework! Owner Financing can be an alternative to restrictive loan criteria imposed by banks but you need to do the math and weigh your options before you sign that dotted line.

Have you noticed there are less foreclosures available for sale in your Highlands County neighborhood than last year? Are you having a hard time finding a good REO property to purchase because there's isn't as much to pick from anymore? Is this the end of the foreclosure crisis in Highlands County? Short answer: NO!

Yes, there are far less REO properties available for sale these days and one might speculate that this means there is a big bold bright light at the end of the tunnel, meaning our market is well on its way to recovery and the bargain prices are going to be a thing of the past.

Let's stick with the facts and examine what we know:

- In January 2011, the Fort Myers News Press reported that banks have recently withdrawn hundreds of foreclosures in Florida. Lee County Clerk of Court Charlie Green (not Sheen) said "We think they're going to come back and re-file". So these are pending foreclosure cases that aren't going to be listed soon. Read the entire article here. I checked the court files for Highlands County and it appears there have been well over 100 Orders of Dismissal on foreclosure cases issued by the Circuit Judge since late fall 2010. Nobody knows why the cases were dismissed and how long it will take these lenders to re-file, IF they intend to do so. Meanwhile, none of these foreclosures are offered for sale.

- Bank of America and/or Countrywide have filed for foreclosue on a total of 2 homeowners in Highlands County since January 2011 while there were hundreds of BoA/CW filings annually in previous years. Does this mean nobody has defaulted on their loan since January? Probably not! Thinking back to the robo signing disaster last year, it is very likely that banks are simply holding back properties...........they don't want to get caught foreclosing without the legal right to do so and these waters are still pretty murky!

None of these cases are going away, they won't disappear, they don't get magically resolved. They are simply lurking in the shadows, waiting to have their day in court. Most likely, many will end up being Real Estate Owned (by banks) and then listed to be sold. Nobody knows how long that will take - but I'm almost certain it won't be next week!

According to the Federal Reserve, nearly a quarter of mortgage applicants are rejected.

"Good borrowers with one or two blemishes on their credit are being denied credit," says Lawrence Yun, the chief economist for the National Association of Realtors®.

As lenders are now requiring higher credit scores and larger down payments, many buyers are left out in the rain:

Anthony Sanders, director of Real Estate Entrepreneurship at George Mason University, estimates that the tighter credit standards has caused as many as 30 percent of would-be buyers - or even more - to sit on the sidelines.

In some rural areas of Polk County and within Highlands County, you can still qualify for a USDA loan with low credit scores or a limited credit history if you meet specific guidelines such as:

1. Verified Rental History
2. Alternative Credit, such as utility bills, auto insurance etc.
3. Savings
4. Job Stability

Keep in mind that building alternative credit is not a substitute for having negative credit but it is a solutoin for home buyers that either have no credit or a very limited credit history.

For more information about USDA loans in Highlands County and Polk County, check out Sean Stephens' Blog

We get a good deal of inquiries on listings and we find that most people seem to believe that the asking price or list price is also the sale price. Many times, with overpriced listings, this leads the caller to believe that the home is not within their price range.

Real Estate is not like a store where the price tag on an item is what you end up paying (plus taxes). Real Estate is negotiable, always! If you find this great home online and it's in the right neighborhood, has all the features you've been dreaming about, don't let the asking price put you off! Yes, it might be that the seller will not budge on the price but it might just as well be that the home is overpriced, has been on the market for an extended amount of time and the seller would accept your offer below list price. You will never know though unless you make that offer and even if it's just a verbal offer.

Hurricane Season starts June 1st, so now is a good time to review your insurance policies to understand what is covered and what is not. If you believe you need to make changes to your policies, do it now. Don't wait until a storm is knocking on your door:

• Windstorm: Make sure that your policy covers windstorms. Some home owners and renters policies may not.
• Flood Insurance: The National Flood Insurance Program is the only underwriter for flood damage to real property or personal effects. You will need to have a separate flood insurance policy written in addition to your homeowners or renters policy. Be advised that there is a 30 day waiting period to get flood insurance, so you'll have to secure the policy in advance of the hurricane season. Your insurance carrier can do this for you, or you can call the National Flood Insurance Program directly at 800-638-6620.
• Replacement Coverage:  As soon as you purchase something and take it home it begins to depreciate including appliances, computers, sound equipment, and other major purchases.   When you make an insurance claim, your adjuster will count the depreciation on the item and you may not get the amount you need to replace the item completely.  Make sure that your personal belongings have replacement coverage that will take a market price for the item in order to replace it in full.
• Deductibles: Review your policy for deductibles, and other exclusions so you know what you can expect to have to pay for out of pocket.  Some Federal disaster loan programs may be available to cover those deductibles.
• Temporary Living Expenses:  Renters and homeowners should take out policies that will provide them funds for temporary living expenses (or loss of use), which you may need if your residence becomes inhabitable.

 Before and After Photos:  Take photos of your residence both inside and out.  Make sure you get clear photos of each room of the house that show the appliances and furniture in each.  Take photos of your personal belongings that may require special insurance coverage.  Make two copies of the pictures, one for you and one for the insurance adjuster.  Once the storm has passed, take the same series of pictures.  

Better quality and printable map at heartlandflorida.com 

When Highalnds County will be impacted by high winds, the following shelters would be opened. Citizens in the Lake Placid area are ancouraged to drive to Sebring and utilize wind compliant shelters. As these shelters apprach capacity, we open the second tier of shelters, wich are primarily public schools and are not wind compliant:

Avon Park
South Florida Community College: 600 West College Drive, Avon Park
Avon Park Recreation Center: 207 East State Street, Avon Park
Avon Elementary School: Cafeteria 705 West Winthrop, Avon Park

Sebring
Sebring High School Auditorium: 3514 Kenilworht Blvd, Sebring
Fred Wilde Elementary Cafeteria: 1910 Highlands Ave, Sebring
Woodlawn Elementary Cafeteria: 718 Fielder Blvd, Sebring

Lake Placid
Lake Placid High School: 202 Green Dragon Drive, Lake Placid (not wind compliant)

Pet Shelters
Avon Park Holiness Camp 1001 West Lake Isis Ave, Avon Park (across from Walmart)

Special Needs Shelters
Agri-Civic Center: 4509 George Blvd, Sebring (not wind compliant)

'Tis the Season ... well, almost:

Even though the forecast for last year's hurricane season predicted some major storms, it stayed nice and calm in Florida.

"The U.S. was extremely lucky in 2010 in that none of the 12 Atlantic basin hurricanes that formed crossed the U.S. coastline," said Philip Klotzbach, a team spokesperson. "On average, about one in four Atlantic basin hurricanes makes U.S. landfall, and therefore, we would expect to see more land falling hurricanes in 2011."

The early forecast for 2011: 17 named storms, 9 hurricanes and 5 major hurricanes with sustained winds of 111 mph or greater for the 2011 hurricane season, which starts June 1 through Nov. 30.

Reuters: "Expect busy 2011 hurricane season, CSU team says"
Geography.About.com - Hurricane Names 2011

Hurricane Preparedness