An initial progress report on the landmark agreement reached in February was released Wednesday, offering the first comprehensive details on how banks are meeting requirements that include offering $25 billion in mortgage relief nationwide.
Friday, August 31, 2012
Florida homeowners receive more than $1.7B from national mortgage settlement
An initial progress report on the landmark agreement reached in February was released Wednesday, offering the first comprehensive details on how banks are meeting requirements that include offering $25 billion in mortgage relief nationwide.
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Florida consumers more confident than most
“Floridians seem somewhat resilient in the face of the economic challenges facing the U.S. and Florida this coming January,” says Chris McCarty, director of UF’s Survey Research Center in the Bureau of Economic and Business Research. The “economic challenges” include current tax cuts and automatic spending cuts that automatically expire on Jan. 1 unless Congress and the president take action.
Of the five components researchers use to assess the economic mood of Floridians, two showed a boost in confidence. Respondents’ faith in U.S. economic conditions over the coming year rose one point to 76, while their optimism about the national economy over the next five years went up four points to 83.
Florida rainy day.
Tropical Storm Isaac headed near the Gulf side Monday, Cape Coral and Lee County dodged another hurricane with little to no damage from the passing tropical storm. Wind speed wasn’t a problem as the media tends to magnify. In all honesty this storm wasn’t much more than a regular rainy day in Florida. However, a water level surged quite a bit as the storm was leaving. The water level had risen over the seawall. The city discontinued its local state of emergency at 8 a.m. Monday and public safety-related services returned to normal operations. The shelter at Island Coast High School was closed Sunday night and the half-dozen evacuees were moved to South Fort Myers High School.Just another Florida rainy day.
Welcome
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
The Blue Oyster Cult and The Fabulous Thunderbird in Cape Coral
The Blue Oyster Cult and The Fabulous Thunderbirds will perform
at a event in Cape Coral this October. The new Rhythm and Reels Redfish Fishing
Tournament and Music Festival takes place 5-7 of October at Tarpon Point
Marina. Blue Oyster Cult’s hits include “Godzilla,” “Burning’ For You” and
“Don’t Fear the Reaper with plenty of Cow Bell. The Fabulous Thunderbirds hits include “Tuff Enuff” and “Wrap It Up.” This
family-friendly festival will also offer kid’s activities and vendors. Tickets
for the 6 p.m. Saturday concert are $20 in advance and $25 the day of the show.
VIP tickets are $75 in advance and $95 the day of the show, and they include
access to a VIP area and a buffet dinner. Entry fee for the tournament is $500
per boat (up to three anglers).U.S. home prices post first 12-month gain since ‘10
U.S. home prices rose in June from the same month last year, the first year-over-year increase since the summer of 2010. The increase is the latest evidence of a nascent recovery in the housing market.
The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index released Tuesday showed a gain of 0.5 percent from June 2011.
The last time the year-over-year index increased was in September 2010. For much of that 12-month period, the government was offering a home-buying tax credit.
The report also showed that all 20 cities tracked by the index rose in June from May, the second consecutive time in which every city posted month-over-month gains. And all but two cities posted stronger gains in June than May.
Detroit, Minneapolis, Chicago and Atlanta recorded the biggest one-month gains.
“The combined positive news coming from both monthly and annual rates of change in home prices bode well for the housing market,” said David Blitzer, chairman of the S&P’s index committee.
Jonathan Basile, an economist with Credit Suisse, said improving home prices should boost home sales further in the coming months.
“Persistent news of rising house prices should start convincing prospective home sellers that it’s not just a buyers’ market,” Basile said. “And when Americans become more comfortable with selling their home, they also become more comfortable with buying another one.”
The S&P/Case-Shiller monthly index covers roughly half of U.S. homes. It measures prices compared with those in January 2000 and creates a three-month moving average. The June figures are the latest available.
The increases partly reflect the impact of seasonal buying. The month-to-month prices aren’t adjusted for seasonal factors.
Still, a measure of national prices rose for the third straight month. Home prices jumped nearly 7 percent in the April-June quarter compared to the previous quarter.
The housing market is making a modest but steady recovery in part because homes are more affordable: Mortgage rates have fallen to near-record lows. Housing prices are about one-third lower than at the peak of the housing bubble in 2006. Those trends have helped lift sales of both new and previously occupied homes.
Sales of previously occupied homes increased in July from June, the National Association of Realtors said last week. Sales have jumped 10 percent in the past year.
Builders are growing more confident after seeing more traffic from potential buyers. Last month they applied for the largest number of building permits in nearly four years.
The housing market has a long way to go to reach a full recovery. Some economists forecast that sales of previously occupied homes will rise 8 percent this year to about 4.6 million. That’s still well below the 5.5 million annual sales pace that is considered healthy.
Sales have been held back by a low supply of homes on the market and tight credit standards, economists said. Many would-be buyers are having trouble qualifying for loans or can’t afford larger down payments being required by banks. A Federal Reserve report last month showed that many banks tightened their mortgage credit standards this summer.
Still, the housing market is steadily improving and is poised to contribute to economic growth this year. Modest economic growth and job gains are encouraging more Americans to buy homes.
The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index released Tuesday showed a gain of 0.5 percent from June 2011.
The last time the year-over-year index increased was in September 2010. For much of that 12-month period, the government was offering a home-buying tax credit.
The report also showed that all 20 cities tracked by the index rose in June from May, the second consecutive time in which every city posted month-over-month gains. And all but two cities posted stronger gains in June than May.
Detroit, Minneapolis, Chicago and Atlanta recorded the biggest one-month gains.
“The combined positive news coming from both monthly and annual rates of change in home prices bode well for the housing market,” said David Blitzer, chairman of the S&P’s index committee.
Jonathan Basile, an economist with Credit Suisse, said improving home prices should boost home sales further in the coming months.
“Persistent news of rising house prices should start convincing prospective home sellers that it’s not just a buyers’ market,” Basile said. “And when Americans become more comfortable with selling their home, they also become more comfortable with buying another one.”
The S&P/Case-Shiller monthly index covers roughly half of U.S. homes. It measures prices compared with those in January 2000 and creates a three-month moving average. The June figures are the latest available.
The increases partly reflect the impact of seasonal buying. The month-to-month prices aren’t adjusted for seasonal factors.
Still, a measure of national prices rose for the third straight month. Home prices jumped nearly 7 percent in the April-June quarter compared to the previous quarter.
The housing market is making a modest but steady recovery in part because homes are more affordable: Mortgage rates have fallen to near-record lows. Housing prices are about one-third lower than at the peak of the housing bubble in 2006. Those trends have helped lift sales of both new and previously occupied homes.
Sales of previously occupied homes increased in July from June, the National Association of Realtors said last week. Sales have jumped 10 percent in the past year.
Builders are growing more confident after seeing more traffic from potential buyers. Last month they applied for the largest number of building permits in nearly four years.
The housing market has a long way to go to reach a full recovery. Some economists forecast that sales of previously occupied homes will rise 8 percent this year to about 4.6 million. That’s still well below the 5.5 million annual sales pace that is considered healthy.
Sales have been held back by a low supply of homes on the market and tight credit standards, economists said. Many would-be buyers are having trouble qualifying for loans or can’t afford larger down payments being required by banks. A Federal Reserve report last month showed that many banks tightened their mortgage credit standards this summer.
Still, the housing market is steadily improving and is poised to contribute to economic growth this year. Modest economic growth and job gains are encouraging more Americans to buy homes.
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Orlando, Miami, Cape Coral and Lakeland in foreclosure rate top 20; Tampa had nation's highest increase over six months
RVINE, Calif. – July 26, 2012 – RealtyTrac released its Midyear 2012 Metropolitan Foreclosure Market Report. It shows that foreclosure activity in the first half of 2012 increased from the previous six months in 125 of the nation’s 212 metropolitan areas with a population of 200,000 or more.
However, in a year-to-year comparison, foreclosure activity declined in 129 of the metro areas.
California cities made up seven of the 10 highest metro foreclosure rates and 10 of the top 20 metro foreclosure rates during the first half of the year, while Florida accounted for four of the top 20 metro foreclosure rates. Illinois accounted for two of the top 20; and Georgia, Arizona, Nevada and Colorado each had one city in the top 20.
“Increasing foreclosure starts in many local markets helped push total foreclosure activity higher in the first half of this year compared to the second half of 2011,” said Brandon Moore, CEO of RealtyTrac. “Those foreclosure starts are welcome news for prospective buyers and real estate brokers in many local markets where a shortage of aggressively priced inventory has been holding up sales activity. Markets with increasing foreclosure starts will likely see more distressed inventory for sale in the form of short sales and bank-owned properties in the second half of the year.”
Top 10 metro foreclosure rates
Stockton, Calif., posted the nation’s highest metro foreclosure rate at 2.66 percent of housing units (one in every 38) in the first half of 2012, followed by four other California cities: Modesto (2.61 percent), Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario (2.59 percent), Vallejo-Fairfield (2.56 percent) and Merced (2.15 percent).
Florida cities in the top 20 include Orlando (No.12), Miami (No. 13), Cape Coral (No. 17) and Lakeland (No. 18).
In gauging change between the last half of 2011 and the first half of 2012, the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater area had the highest foreclosure increase at 47 percent.
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