Holiday Greetings to all who visit our site, we hope that you and your family have a very Merry Christmas.
This is a perfect time to announce that the Greater Tampa Bay Real Estate -Blog - and for that matter the entire Real Estate site has been mobilized by our web design team over at Virtual Interactive Systems. What does this mean to you ? If you currently have an iPhone or are lucky enough to have just received one for a gift, then you really want to open up your browser to our site and behold the wonder of actually being able to see and interact with the site and the content. Yes, you can now view all of our Greater Tampa Bay Real Estate listings in addition, you can search all Tampa Real Estate MLS listings or for that matter all of Florida from our site, via your iPhone, now how cool is that ?
By the way, there have been two really good articles written recently regarding Real Estate web sites and mobilizing them for the iPhone and other platforms. Here's a great article from the Home Gain blog entitled "Is an iPhone Under Your Tree This Christmas?" featuring some of the screen shots of our new iPhone compatible site. Not to be outdone, the design team at Virtual Interactive Systems followed up with their article "Real Estate Mobility".
Now this is truly a gift for viewers to our site, that will last through out the year!
As the DOJ case against NAR enters into a critical path this summer, the DOJ is starting to take aim at other players in the MLS game. This is only the beginning and it is very apparent to many, that NAR’s iron fisted rule on the MLS will not come out of this unscathed.
Having interacted with over a hundred of the top MLS’s through the United States I can say from my perspective, that this is going to be welcomed with open arms for those wanting to open this up to the masses and to help create a free and unfettered access to this data. The way it has been controlled has got to change. The times and the technologies brought to bear in today's digital world that we live in are also changing and this is another one of those changes that is coming soon to an MLS Board near you.
It is worth reading and before you comment, you should arm yourself with the knowledge of actually reading the content of the complaints as filed by the DOJ (links are in the posts - his and mine). Also, be sure to check out the article I wrote back in February 2007 that goes into more background and details on this. MLS Data compliance and NAR vs. DOJ
The results are in for the first quarter and it is not a pretty picture on the foreclosure front here in Florida or for that matter the Tampa Real Estate Market.
Two reports this week that are interesting depending on how you can decipher the content ? The first report is by Trans Union. They put together a trended analysis report that reviews 2007 fourth quarter data to compile their latest statistics and then forecast for 2008. They are reporting that Florida delinquent mortgages have increased by 34 %.
The top three areas showing the largest growth in delinquency from previous quarters are Florida at (34 percent), California (33 percent) and Arizona (32 percent).
“The market continues to see the effect of the mortgage crisis in the steeply increasing mortgage delinquency rates among borrowers across the country,” said Keith Carson, a senior consultant in Trans Union's financial services group.
The national 60-day mortgage borrower delinquency rate is expected to continue to rise throughout 2008 from a value of nearly 3.0 percent in the 4th quarter of 2007 to 4.0 percent or greater by year end.
On another note: Realty Trac released their quarterly report on the U.S. Foreclosure Market which states that “Foreclosure activity has increased by 23 % in the first quarter of 2008.” They are reporting that Nevada, California, Arizona posted the top state foreclosure rates.
“Foreclosure filings were reported on 87,893 Florida properties during the first quarter, the second highest state total and giving Florida the nation’s fourth highest foreclosure rate — one in every 97 households received a foreclosure filing during the quarter. Foreclosure activity in the state was up 17 percent from the previous quarter and up 178 percent from the first quarter of 2007.”
“The highest ranked Florida metro area was Fort Lauderdale, which ranked No. 8 with one in every 73 households receiving a foreclosure filing during the quarter. Other Florida metro areas in the top 20 included Orlando at No. 13, Miami at No. 14 and Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice at No. 15. The foreclosure rate in Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater ranked No. 21.”
So this actually shows that the Tampa and St. Petersburg Real Estate areas are faring a bit better on the over all State level.
While the numbers on a whole do not look too promising, this is still a positive note for the Tampa Bay Area Housing Markets, and once again affirms the prediction by our States Economist that Tampa Real Estate markets will recover first starting with Pasco County.
If you want to find out specific information on Foreclosure statistics in your area and or find out which homes are in foreclosure or are on the auction list, you can go to RealtyTracs home page, click on the interactive map. For example click on the US Map, in the Florida area, this will then pull up a State Map where you can enter in a specific county. For example Pasco County and then click on search.
You will then be presented with the break down of total number of homes in pre-foreclosure, auction, bank owned etc. You can gain some pretty good information for free however, to see specifics on taxes etc you have to have a paid membership. The site looks complex but is fairly easy to navigate. Check back tomorrow and I will post a quick video over-view to walk you through the process.
NAR released their March 2008 report and the picture is still not very pretty.
Resale homes continued to drop and now stand at 19.3 percent off of March 2007 numbers. In addition, the media resale home price continued it’s spiral and fell another 7.7 percent compared to the same month in 2007. The median price in 2007 was $217,400. and as of March 31, 2008 it now stands at $200,700.
According to NAR “Regionally, sales rose in the Northeast and West but fell in the Midwest and South.”
So how does the picture differ her in the Tampa Real Estate Market ?
Well according to recent report by the West Pasco Board of Realtors, the Pasco County market has actually had two very good months back to back that prove while the bottom is still elusive in most places it appears to be settling some in other areas. It does appear that their is still more room for prices to drop before the national average stabilizes though.
What is interesting in the Pasco County scenario is that a Florida Economist “Hank” Fishkind, had predicted that areas within the Tampa Bay would recover before others in the state. It may be a bit optimistic at this point to say he his right only more time will tell.
If you are a regular reader to this Blog, then you might recall this post back in February “Florida’s indifferent real estate market in Tampa…huh ? The significance of this post is the comments made by Mr. Fishkind, with specific reference to Pasco County Real Estate he said”
1. HOME SALES:Pasco and Hernando counties’ housing markets have hit bottom and are most likely to start the the turn around ?.this will be seen later in the year. Hillsborough County is close to the bottom, but Pinellas County has a few more months in this downturn before home sales and prices will stabilize.
I could not believe this latest information on the Foreclosure front. Just when you thought things were as unreal as they could be with the entire mortgage market meltdown, the amount of home owners that have walked away from their homes due to falling values and now add to this Trashing your Home for money ?
You heard me correct, check out this video segment. It appears that many homeowners angry with their banks refusal to work with them have been taking out their frustrations on the bank and the lenders by totally trashing their homes as they-vacate them. It has been so bad that many banks are now paying top dollar to the former owners to leave the property with a guarantee not to tamper with the home.
I believe that this footage is from the West Coast.
Has any one in the Tampa Real Estate Market observed this ?
What about Florida as a whole ?
Please comment if you have heard about this, or know anyone that has ?
I was recently accepted as a guest Blogger and Technology advice contributor over at the Home Gain Real Estate Blog. Since my back ground is based in the technology sector and I have been actively involved in the Real Estate industry for some time, it made sense for me to contribute to the larger Real Estate society of Bloggers and those that look upon Home Gain. After all Home Gain was one of the first major players in the online scene of Real Estate and competitors like Zillow have continued to hone their best practices following the path all ready blazed by Home Gain.
My first article written exclusively for the Home Gain Blog is entitled New Technology and the Social Forest. In the article I take a look at the amount of Industry published self help articles aimed at Realtors that are not into the Social Media aspects of today's online Real Estate.
This article has started a lively debate and several comments have all ready developed from the article. The comments are positive and supportive of my article comments. However, one comment in particular I felt should be drawn out for more dialog. So I thought I would share it here and then those that want to continue can do so, as well as having you check out the base article over at the Home Gain Blog.
So moving on:
Steve Obermon commented:
“There really isn’t a one-size-fits-all entry point to social media marketing. There are many entry points and if one does not work for a Realtor, they should just try another until one works in their market.
Those who choose not to participate in social media do so at their own risk.
Eight out of ten housing consumers are on line – are you visible to them as a Realtor? When they contact you by phone or email, are you available? Is your brokerage set up to work in web time? Good basic questions to start with – and review as you go along.
And,yes – seek out the best advice you can get for free and pay for if you need it.
Start as soon as you can your market is waiting!”
My Reply to Steve:
Trial and error in the Technology arena especially in the current market is only for those that have the aptitude, foresight, time and money. If you are one of the agents I referred to that still has issues managing your email and trying to figure where to find files on your PC then you need professional, expert advice. The first place you should look would be your local community college or other technical training resources in your community to get you up to speed with the rest of the business community on basic computer skills. Trying to jump in on the social scene without the basics will make you even more confused and steer more agents way from the very thing they should be learning to embrace.
Every one talks about consumers on line, and most of those consumer are more computer and web savvy than your average Realtor.
Why ? Because most of them have grown up with games and computes from the very onset.
I have very vivid memories of when the PC revolution really hit me. Do you recall when yours was ?
It was in my first year at a community college back in the mid 80’s. I was taking English composition 101 and had to write weekly short stories for submission. I was on active duty in the Navy at the time and had access to IBM Selectric typewriters which were the best you could get at the time. Obviously, word processors were only used by those that could afford them. While Apple had started building PC’s in the late 70’s it was not until IBM started selling the Personal PC in the 80’s that Personal Computer usage really started to take off. So here I was typing, re-typing and correcting my term papers only to find out I missed a major typo that cut my final grade by a whole grade point. Yet, the top student in the class did all her work on an Apple PC. At the time, my thought was that she was cheating. Interesting enough, I was all ready involved with computers as my job in the Navy was as Technical Instructor teaching students how to maintain and repair system utilized on the then most advanced Submarine of the time, the Ohio class Trident Submarines. The systems I worked on were the Univac AN/UYK-7 and AN/UYK-43 systems which were the US Navy's standard main frame computing system for war ships. So, I had a head start on the technology arena, and I still spend a massive quantity of my time learning and trying to stay up to date on the technological changes which seem to happen at an almost daily rate.
Yet, many of today’s realtor's have not been involved with computers of any type for this length of time. Not that anyone should have to match my skills, thats not what I am implying here however, they should be more proficient at the normal tools of business for that profession.Statistics will bear that most children born to these same Realtors have mores computer skills than their parents.
If there was an aptitude test for a Real Estate Agent to obtain or renew their license today , based on the ability to manage email, organize files on a computer and be able to aptly use MS Office tools like Outlook, Word, Excel and Power Point, I would wager my home that over 50% of the active Real Estate agents in the US would fail and loose their license.
This is a rather huge issue and NO ONE is willing to even discuss it, except maybe me. The Brokers I think are the ones who have looked the other on may of these issues, yet again many Brokers I know and have talked with suffer from the same affliction. Yes, there is a lot of training available by the various Realtor Organizations, but much of it is still fee based, and from the ones I have investigated they cost more than the tuition to a local community college or technical school would charge.
If NAR really wanted to assist Realtors, they would open up their E-PRO classes to any realtor. Or even better yet, make it mandatory in order to for you to renew your license. But the fee structure should be waived and they should also institute basic skill sets.
In my opinion: When this happens you will see more agents embrace blogging and Social Media. Until then they should look to experts in their fields to get them up to speed.
If your goal is get to eyeballs to your site, that is increase your site traffic, so you get more phone calls etc…then pick someone who has a proven track record of doing just that. Weather you have a static site and just want improve upon it by adding blogging, or maybe your blogging is not getting you anywhere and you need some one to look your site over and tell you what needs to be done, check them out.
Shameless Plug: Now when you want to talk about Video for your site, I am not talking about your garden variety You Tube video. I am talking about a Viral Social Media Video campaign that works in synergy with your blog system to get your message noticed. If that’s your cup of tea or coffee as it may be, then check us out and give us a call over at Virtual Interactive Systems.
It’s no wonder that home buyers sit on the fence and wonder when the right time to buy will arrive? Since the the mass confusion in the markets continues and the various media outlets can’t seem to come together on what’s really up anymore.
Heres a perfect example of Florida Real Estate as compared to other states :
In this weekends local St. Pete Times Finance section, I read an article that discussed the facts, that some home owners were finding out that the falling values of their homes were effecting previously issued home equity lines of credit. This column-article by Helen Huntly lists several local citizens as point of reference.
What’s interesting in this story, is that one of the individuals used as a source doesn’t come clean and tell the Times that their are…umm…issues with that owned property, that would make anyone understand why the bank said NO.
St. Pete times should vet comments or sources a little bit more prior to printing articles using outside sources.
Ok even so …..this seems plausible given the current economic climate we are in. But then today I read an online article on the Wall Street Journal touting how a Home Equity line of Credit could be your safety net ?
The last line in that article is kind of interesting to say the least “And you won't be penalized if you never tap your home-equity credit line.”
So what’s your experience, is this happening as much as the Times says it is here in the Greater Tampa Bay?
[...] [...] some of the ensuing controversy (Lenderama, CBS5.com, InmanNews, GreaterTampaBayRealEstate), I’m going to attempt here a crude recap of my conversation with Kevin. If you’ve any [...] [...]
This is related to an earlier post I made regarding the DOJ's lawsuit against Realtor.com and the issue over MLS (Multiple Listing Service). It appears that the presence of this new venture on the scene in the Real Estate Search community, had ruffled some feathers of a few of the Top Real Estate Brokers (BLOGGERS). Some suggested that what Dot Homes was doing may not be entirely legitimate or in compliance with MLS regulations.Seems that this answer is right on the money: After you have clicked on the link above you will also see my reply:
"I think this is an excellent review of Dot Homes capabilities as well as highlighting the short sidedness of many Brokers in the Real Estate industry today. I don’t think you can explain it any clearer than this. This is a tool that Brokers should welcome with open arms…especially given the current economic climate. Also, keep in mind that there are well over 150 MLS associations in the U.S. alone, that all have their own version of what constitutes compliance. This entire MLS issue is so overblown and in many opinions has been the major issue that has suppressed innovation and competition in our industry. Why else is the US DOJ going after Realtor.Com with such vigor? Could it be that they represent monopolistic tendencies when it comes to the MLS ? Going forward, I think this kind of makes Kevin’s entire comment on the MLS issue kind of baseless. "
I was working another post and in my research came across a comment from Marc Davison (1000 Watt Consulting Blog) that really fit the exact phrasing for what I was trying to convey. “Mmm, when did not having to work hard become the path to success? Oh yeah, 1997-2005. I wish we can scroll back time. I wish I could sit around and collect paychecks by doing little or nothing.”
The comment above was in response to a post regarding implementation of Web 2.0 services by Realtors, or lack there of. Things like this blog for example. Yes there are quite a few of us that GET IT especially when it comes to Tampa Bay Real Estate. Blogging and Real Estate seems to be a bit more lofty of a goal for too few. We, are a rare minority in the scheme of National Real Estate statistics. Ok, so where am I going with this ?
Well, besides the whole Real Estate Technology thing, I think one of the larger problems with our industry is the lack of oversight by the Brokers, much the same has transpired with the mortgage industry. No way your saying….say it isn’t true ?
Let me share these two small stories with you to help explain my point.
1. A local Buyers Agent works with an out of town client (out of town meaning out of State or out of the Country) who wants to invest in a large home and has a set price in mind. The agent locates a suitable home and helps to buy the home at the full asking price of the seller. Where this gets interesting is that the agent never attempted to negotiate for a lower price for the buyer. This agent in doing this deal just added to the entire housing industry mess we are in. How ? because this agent was truly un-ethical, greedy and lazy to boot. In the current market, not even attempting to negotiate for your client to gain a better price is shameless, regardless of how much money the person has.
2. A seller negotiates with a client to list their vacation home at a reduced rate of 2% if the deal is split between buyer and seller agents. So this agent takes a picture from the client and lists the home on the MLS and waits for the buyers to call. What’s wrong here ? The Agent took the clients picture (which by the way was a very bad shot of the home). The agent did not take any pictures of their own or even suggest to the client that they would need additional pictures to help advertise the listing. There also, was no mention or suggestion of Virtual Tour or brochures (oh, I think the client did the brochures…) and no web marketing. Meaning the listing was not advertised anywhere except the MLS, the Brokers site and Realtor.com (with-1 photo). So now the home has little to no chance of getting a buyer in the current market.
Our industry has gotten a huge black eye lately and agents like these don’t help make it any better. A lot of the agents are the ones that are complaining that Web 2.0 technologies are too hard or complicated. They are the same lazy ones that act as I mentioned above. Those of us that really go the extra mile for our clients continue to get maligned in the media because of our industries lack of oversight in cases like this. And who is to blame ? Mostly the same lazy brokers that are allowing this to happen. Either they are too lazy to educate their teams or they have no clue? It’s time that our industry started to gain a better hand at managing the ethical ways in which we conduct business.
Our clients are getting smarter and more savvy at technology. I think it’s time for an over haul of our Realtors ethics pledge, or rather the methodology to ensure that the agents and or brokers that allow this are sent packing.
If your a home owner that has had a bad experience like this or even an agent, speak up.
Zillow revised their 4th Quarter report late Thursday the 28th of February that according to Zillow “MORE EXPLICITLY DESCRIBES THE RATES OF NEGATIVE EQUITY FOR ALL HOMEOWNERS IN THE U.S. IN EACH OF THE YEARS 2003, 2006 AND 2007.” The original report had been released on February 12th as reported on PRNewswire.
In that report the key news was with regards to Condos where Zillows stated that Condos had posted the largest Year-over-Year value declines; down 7.4% compared to single family housing that was down by 5.5%.
This is the 3rd News Release by Zillow for the month of February. I strongly believe, that the main reason for this clarification was the confusion and somewhat dissolution by most home owners at the report posted on February 7th, where Zillow reported the findings of a survey that revealed, that Home Owners were in Denial or Inattention to what was happening in their markets with many indicating that other houses had lost value but not theirs. Actually I think Zillow was spot on here.
The new report does add some clarification to the 3rd Paragraph as detailed below:
“The continued decline in home values means many U.S. homeowners saw equity slip away while more homeowners were pushed into negative equity situations, meaning they owe more on their mortgage than the home is currently worth. Nationwide, those at most risk of being underwater on their mortgage are those who bought in the last two years when most markets peaked. Of those who bought in 2006, 39 percent now have negative home equity as do 30 percent of those who purchased in 2007. By comparison, only 3 percent of those who purchased five years ago, in 2003, and less than one percent of all homes in the U.S., in each of the years 2003, 2006 and 2007, have negative equity.”
What really puts this into perspective are the graphic images from Zillows Zindex Home Value Estimator
I have also compiled a quick look at the Greater Tampa Bay Real Estate scene including Sarasota so you can gain a good perspective of the shape that we are in locally in Florida.
Click on the thumbnail picture (below) to pull up a larger view:
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News, Views and Tips about Real Estate in and around the Greater Tampa Bay Area.
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Holiday Greetings to all who visit our site, we hope that you and your family have a very Merry Christmas.
As the 
The results are in for the first quarter and it is not a pretty picture on the foreclosure front here in Florida or for that matter the Tampa Real Estate Market.
By Thomas Townsend:
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