First-time homebuyer mortgage options
Sunday, 14 May 2017
NEW YORK – Buying a home for the first time can be daunting. In addition to mountains of paperwork and new financial terms to sort through, you’ll face costs and fees that can quickly add up. Fortunately, many grants and programs exist to help first-time homebuyers. Here are some of them: FHA loan With this
- Published in Housing Market, Local, Mortgage, News, Real Estate, South Tampa, St Petersburg, Tampa Bay
Tampa’s waterfront Rattlesnake Point is for sale; condos and apartments could replace warehouses
Thursday, 11 May 2017
Rattlesnake Point, a 30.9-acre waterfront tract south of the Gandy Bridge on the Tampa side , is for sale at an undisclosed price. [Courtesy of Dronebase.com] TAMPA — Gritty industrial activity could give way to more condos, apartments and townhomes as yet another prime waterfront tract in Tampa hits the market. Tampa-based Viper Ventures is
- Published in Blog, Housing Market, Investors, Local, Luxury, News, Real Estate, South Tampa, Tampa Bay
Property tax cap heads to 2018 ballot
Monday, 08 May 2017
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A top legislative priority of Florida Realtors passed on Wednesday. It gives voters the chance to make permanent a 10 percent cap in non-homestead property tax increases during the 2018 general election. The passage of SJR 76/HJR 21 successfully ends a nearly year-long effort by Florida Realtors to get the proposed amendment
- Published in Housing Market, Important, Investors, Local, Luxury, Mortgage, News, Real Estate, South Tampa, St Petersburg, Tampa Bay
When will mortgage rates rise? What happens when they do?
Thursday, 04 May 2017
NEW YORK – At some point, mortgage rates will rise again. Americans have, so far, been resilient to rising mortgage rates, but a bigger impact could come soon, say Goldman Sachs economists. Housing’s share of the economy rose above normal levels from November to January, despite mortgage rates surging 60 basis points at the time.
- Published in General, Housing Market, Investors, Local, Mortgage, News, Real Estate, South Tampa, Tampa Bay
Will mortgage rates below 4% spur market?
Monday, 01 May 2017
WASHINGTON – Mortgage rates dropped below 4 percent last week for the first time since November, just as the crucial spring selling season gets under way. The average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dropped to 3.97 percent from 4.08 percent a week earlier; in mid-March, the FRM averaged 4.3 percent. The drop could encourage
- Published in General, Housing Market, Local, Mortgage, News, Real Estate, South Tampa, Tampa Bay
Top return on investment? Smaller remodeling projects
Saturday, 29 April 2017
CHICAGO – April 20, 2017 – Appraisal Institute research finds that homeowners who want a remodeling project to return as much money as possible at closing should opt for smaller projects. A limited kitchen redo, for example, returns a higher percentage of the cost. “The latest research shows that home improvements with a relatively low
- Published in General, Housing Market, Investors, Local, Real Estate, South Tampa, Tampa Bay
If you like tiny houses, you’ll love these tiny apartments coming to Tampa
Tuesday, 25 April 2017
TAMPA — You’ve heard of tiny houses. Now Tampa could become one of the first places in Florida to have tiny apartments. Urban Core Holdings, LLC is under contract to buy a 12-story downtown office building and convert the top eight floors into micro-apartments. Each would have a kitchen with a two-burner stove top, microwave
- Published in Blog, Housing Market, Local, Real Estate, South Tampa, Tampa Bay
March madness for Tampa Bay home sales with double-digit price increases
Sunday, 23 April 2017
This home in Land O’ Lakes sold for $1.125 million in March, making it Pasco County’s top sale of the month. [Courtesy of Tom Carr/Christopher Williams] This gulf-front home in Belleair Shore sold for $4.809 million in March, making it Pinellas County’s top sale of the month. [Courtesy of Cary John] This home in
- Published in General, Housing Market, Investors, Local, Luxury, News, Real Estate, South Tampa, St Petersburg, Tampa Bay
Millennial owners’ advice to peers: Get off the sidelines
Friday, 21 April 2017
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – April 12, 2017 – Millennials who bought a home are generally happy about it. Bank of America’s second annual Homebuyer Insights Report finds that millennials who have taken the plunge into homeownership buy the house they can afford now and plan to buy their ideal home later. A large majority (68 percent)
- Published in General, Housing Market, Investors, Local, Mortgage, News, Real Estate, South Tampa, Tampa Bay
Mortgage lenders optimistic about 2017
Tuesday, 18 April 2017
NEW YORK – April 12, 2017 – Continued economic improvement should give first-time homebuyers the boost they need to enter the market. In fact, about three in five independent mortgage lenders (59 percent) in a recent survey predict an increase in first-time homebuyers in 2017. The prediction comes from The Lenders One Cooperative, a national
- Published in General, Housing Market, Investors, Local, Luxury, Mortgage, News, Real Estate, South Tampa, St Petersburg, Tampa Bay