Congress increased the first-time home buyer tax credit to $8,000 from $7,500 in February 2009, and eliminated the repayment requirement. This tax credit is available to first-time home buyers who purchase homes between January 1, 2009 and December 1, 2009 . . . the sales contract must be closed by December 1.
Qualifications for these tax credits are shown below:
First-time home buyers . . . purchaser or his/her spouse . . . may not have owned a residence during the three years prior to the purchase.
Tax Credit applies to primary residences: single-family homes, condos, townhomes, and co-ops.
Maximum allowable credit is equal to 10% of the purchase price . . . up to $8,000.
Maximum tax credit is available to single buyers with income up to $75,000 and to married couples up to $150,000.
Tax credit decreases for single buyers with income between $75,000 and $95,000 and to married couples with income between $150,000 and $170,000.
Singles earning over $95,000 and couples earning over $170,000 are not eligible for the tax credit.
Home must be occupied for three years or more to qualify for non-repayment.
If property is sold during the three-year period, the credit will be recouped on the sale.
Starting July 1, 2009, First-time home buyers in Florida can apply for downpayment assistance in advance of closing and then repay the amount borrowed when they get their tax refund. The program will be administered by local county housing authority.
FHA-approved lenders will soon be able to issue a short-term bridge loan equal to the tax credit to be applied to additional downpayment or other closing costs above the 3.5% downpayment required to be paid by the buyer.
To discuss this tax credit, contact our office at 866-768-2895 or call your local county housing authority or an FHA-approved lender in your area. Also you may visit the website www.floridarealtors.org/aboutfar/homebuyercenter/index.cfm.
Please be advised that this is a new program and internal programs with lenders and county housing administrators will require some time to work out the details and are subject to change. The above details for the tax credit were provided by the National Association of Realtors and the Florida Association of Realtors.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
A LOOK AT THE PINE ISLAND REAL ESTATE MARKET
Some customers and other real estate watchers have asked, “When will this market improve?” . . . “How will we know when we’re at the bottom?” There are varying opinions as to when we will actually hit the bottom and when the recovery will begin in Florida. Some observers think that this has actually happened – others do not. Real estate markets are “local” and the same rules do not apply to all markets in our country equally. My expertise is the Pine Island market, so that is the focus of this article!
The Pine Island housing market actually peaked in 2004, with 321 residential sales. The vacant land market peaked in 2005 with 343 land sales. We can track the buildup to these peaks by looking at the number of sales each year starting from 1999. We were wondering in ’04 and ‘05 how much higher the prices could go . . . and how much longer the insatiable demand for properties on the Island could last! Well . . . we found out!
Having been very active during those years leading up to ‘05, I decided to get my broker’s license and start my own real estate agency, which I accomplished by September ‘05. Before the end of that year, buyers had lost interest in Pine Island and were moving on to other markets. In ‘06, ‘07, and ‘08, the number of housing sales dropped down to around the numbers we had seen in ‘99 and ‘01 (168, 148, and 179 respectively). In contrast, land sales during that same time declined to levels lower than they were in ‘99 (88, 70, and 64).
What is the status of the real estate market on Pine Island this year? In the first quarter of ‘09, there were 40 housing sales . . . 15 in Bokeelia, 23 in St. James City, and 2 in Matlacha. Out of the 40 sales, 6 were bank owned foreclosures, 5 were short sales, and 29 were normal sales. Of the 15 sales in Bokeelia, 9 were single-family off water; 2 were single-family waterfront; and 4 were manufactured off-water homes. Of the 23 sales in St. James City, 12 were single-family waterfront; 4 were single-family off-water; and 7 were manufactured waterfront. The two sales in Matlacha were single-family waterfront homes.
In the first quarter of ‘09 there were 9 vacant land sales . . . 5 in Bokeelia and 4 in St. James City. Eight of the sales were off-water and only one was a waterfront lot for a manufactured home.
At the time of this writing, there are 273 active housing listings, 31 pending, 4 active contingent, and 16 active contingent short sales. In the month of April there were 18 housing sales, which makes our inventory of 273 homes a 15-month supply with an absorption rate of 7%.
There are 319 vacant land listings and 3 pending sales. In the month of April there were 3 land sales, making our inventory of 319 land listings a 106-month supply with an absorption rate of 1%.
In summary, the status of the real estate market on Pine Island is that our inventory is still high, and prices have come down considerably. We had 58 housing and 12 land sales through April of this year. There are currently 31 pending housing and 3 pending land sales. Our real estate market is better than most other markets in Lee County, mainly due to the fact that we did not have all the speculation building that occurred in those areas, so we have not experienced the high numbers of short sales and foreclosures.
Mortgage interest rates are currently low, and an $8,000 federal tax credit is available for first time homebuyers, if the sales contract is closed by December 1, 2009. It’s a buyer’s market, and many buyers are now seizing this opportunity to purchase their piece of paradise on beautiful Pine Island!
Located on a pristine Island in Southwest Florida, Pine Island offers a lifestyle that is unique . . . casual . . . and off the beaten track! It has charm and appeal that other geographical locations can’t claim. My husband and I have lived here for over fifteen years and know of no other place in the world that we would rather be!
The Pine Island housing market actually peaked in 2004, with 321 residential sales. The vacant land market peaked in 2005 with 343 land sales. We can track the buildup to these peaks by looking at the number of sales each year starting from 1999. We were wondering in ’04 and ‘05 how much higher the prices could go . . . and how much longer the insatiable demand for properties on the Island could last! Well . . . we found out!
Having been very active during those years leading up to ‘05, I decided to get my broker’s license and start my own real estate agency, which I accomplished by September ‘05. Before the end of that year, buyers had lost interest in Pine Island and were moving on to other markets. In ‘06, ‘07, and ‘08, the number of housing sales dropped down to around the numbers we had seen in ‘99 and ‘01 (168, 148, and 179 respectively). In contrast, land sales during that same time declined to levels lower than they were in ‘99 (88, 70, and 64).
What is the status of the real estate market on Pine Island this year? In the first quarter of ‘09, there were 40 housing sales . . . 15 in Bokeelia, 23 in St. James City, and 2 in Matlacha. Out of the 40 sales, 6 were bank owned foreclosures, 5 were short sales, and 29 were normal sales. Of the 15 sales in Bokeelia, 9 were single-family off water; 2 were single-family waterfront; and 4 were manufactured off-water homes. Of the 23 sales in St. James City, 12 were single-family waterfront; 4 were single-family off-water; and 7 were manufactured waterfront. The two sales in Matlacha were single-family waterfront homes.
In the first quarter of ‘09 there were 9 vacant land sales . . . 5 in Bokeelia and 4 in St. James City. Eight of the sales were off-water and only one was a waterfront lot for a manufactured home.
At the time of this writing, there are 273 active housing listings, 31 pending, 4 active contingent, and 16 active contingent short sales. In the month of April there were 18 housing sales, which makes our inventory of 273 homes a 15-month supply with an absorption rate of 7%.
There are 319 vacant land listings and 3 pending sales. In the month of April there were 3 land sales, making our inventory of 319 land listings a 106-month supply with an absorption rate of 1%.
In summary, the status of the real estate market on Pine Island is that our inventory is still high, and prices have come down considerably. We had 58 housing and 12 land sales through April of this year. There are currently 31 pending housing and 3 pending land sales. Our real estate market is better than most other markets in Lee County, mainly due to the fact that we did not have all the speculation building that occurred in those areas, so we have not experienced the high numbers of short sales and foreclosures.
Mortgage interest rates are currently low, and an $8,000 federal tax credit is available for first time homebuyers, if the sales contract is closed by December 1, 2009. It’s a buyer’s market, and many buyers are now seizing this opportunity to purchase their piece of paradise on beautiful Pine Island!
Located on a pristine Island in Southwest Florida, Pine Island offers a lifestyle that is unique . . . casual . . . and off the beaten track! It has charm and appeal that other geographical locations can’t claim. My husband and I have lived here for over fifteen years and know of no other place in the world that we would rather be!
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