Fort Lauderdale Luxury Condominiums

February home prices drop in Palm and Broward, but bottom is near, analysts say 

> Posted by Paul Owers on March 23, 2010 11:25 AM

Median prices for existing homes fell in both Broward and Palm Beach counties in February, but many analysts are optimistic that the steep declines are over.

Broward County’s median price in February was $186,700, down 13 percent from a year ago but up slightly from $180,000 in January, the Florida Realtors said Tuesday.

Palm Beach County’s February median was $219,100, down 4 percent from a year earlier and off 8 percent from $238,600 in January. The median means half the homes sold for more, half for less.

Despite the lackluster numbers, housing observers say the bottom for prices is near.

“I don’t see prices declining significantly,” said David Dabby, a Coral Gables housing analyst. “They’re basically at levels that people can afford.”

The two counties reported modest increases in existing sales last month. Broward sales rose 6 percent from February 2009, while Palm Beach County sales inched up 5 percent from a year ago.

The existing condominium market was especially hot in February compared with a year ago.

Sales increased 41 percent in Broward, while the median price of $71,500 was 17 percent below February 2009.

Palm Beach County’s existing condo sales rose 45 percent, while the median price of $96,700 was off 5 percent from a year earlier.

Reprinted with permission from Sun-Sentinel. Paul Owers can be reached at Powers@Sunsentinel.com or 561-243-6529.

54 percent of Broward mortgages are underwater

> Posted by Paul Owers on February 23, 2010 04:41 PM

Half of all residential mortgage holders in Broward County owe more than their homes are worth, according to year-end data from First American CoreLogic.

Roughly 54 percent of Broward mortgage holders – 246,675 homeowners – are “underwater.” In Palm Beach County, 45.4 percent of mortgage holders – 157,544 homeowners -- have so-called negative equity.

Most people who owe more than their homes are worth bought at or near the peak of the housing boom, sometime between 2004 and 2006. Some also pulled equity out of their homes by refinancing.

"Negative equity is a significant drag on both the housing market and on economic growth," said Mark Fleming, chief economist with First American CoreLogic. "It is driving foreclosures and decreasing mobility for millions of homeowners."

Analysts say borrowers are more likely to bail on an underwater mortgage, adding to the housing market's woes.

Nationally, 11.3 million mortgage holders owe more than the house is worth, CoreLogic said. The firm says negative equity is concentrated in five states: Nevada (70 percent of all of its mortgaged properties), Arizona (51 percent), Florida (48 percent), Michigan (39 percent) and California (35 percent).

Last month, Zillow.com said about four in 10 single-family mortgage holders in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties were underwater. Unlike Zillow, CoreLogic factors in condominiums to its report.

Report: Home prices in Palm, Broward slated to tank next year

> Posted by Paul Owers on December 10, 2009 12:07 PM

Fortune magazine is out with its 2010 housing outlook. Could be quite a jolt for folks who think the market is improving, especially here in South Florida.

The magazine quotes Mark Zandi, chief economist for Moody’s Economy.com, as saying foreclosures will continue to play a major role in the downturn. Zandi says prices will fall by another 5 or 10 percent nationally and by as much as 33 percent in Miami.

Economy.com says Palm Beach County prices will fall another 24 percent next year and another 30 percent in Broward County.

Florida has second-highest foreclosure rate

By Paul Owers, Sun Sentinel

December 9, 2009

Florida had the nation's second-highest foreclosure rate in November, surpassing California, and housing market researchers fear the problem could deteriorate even more over the next two years.

One in every 165 homes in Florida entered some stage of foreclosure last month, RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday. Only Nevada was worse, at one in every 119 houses.

Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties had the nation's 13th-highest foreclosure rate among metro areas, with one in every 136 homes receiving foreclosure notices in November.

The crisis began in 2006 when risky mortgages taken out during the housing boom began to reset, forcing homeowners into drastically higher monthly payments. More recently, mounting job losses have been to blame for people losing their homes to lenders.

But exotic loans could be the problem once again, said Brad Hunter, South Florida director for the Metrostudy research firm in West Palm Beach.

Even if the employment picture improves next year, a slew of "Option ARM" adjustable-rate mortgages are scheduled to reset by 2011, potentially pushing thousands more homeowners into foreclosure.

"That, to me, is a real threat to the high-end housing market," Hunter said. "A lot of those loans were written on newer, larger houses in nice, suburban neighborhoods."

Nearly 53,000 Florida homeowners received foreclosure notices in November, up 2 percent from October and 8 percent from a year ago, said RealtyTrac, an Irvine.-Calif.-based company that tracks foreclosed properties.

Nationally, more than 306,000 homes entered some stage of foreclosure in November. It was the fourth consecutive month that the number declined after peaking in July.

Loan modifications and other efforts to keep people in their homes appear to be working, at least temporarily, but many borrowers whose loans are modified end up defaulting again, said Daren Blomquist, a spokesman for IRealtyTrac.

The large foreclosure numbers include an increasing number of "underwater" homeowners walking away because they don't have any equity.

"It's hard for homeowners to say, 'I'm going to keep making payments when what I owe is so far above what the property is worth,' " Blomquist said.

The RealtyTrac figures include default notices, scheduled foreclosure auctions and bank repossessions. Not all homeowners who get foreclosure notices ultimately lose their properties.

South Florida foreclosures are rising, but at a slower pace than in the first half of 2009, said Peter Zalewski, principal at Condo Vultures, a Bal Harbour-based real estate consulting firm.

The reason, Zalewski said, is that lenders suddenly seem more willing to consider short sales, which are an "easier solution than going through the whole foreclosure process."

Still, more foreclosures loom. Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties are among the national leaders in first mortgage defaults – delinquent loans on which lenders have yet to start foreclosure proceedings, according to Moody's Economy.com.

Marisa DiLenge, a real estate agent for Prudential Florida 1st Realty in Plantation, said many of her clients have lost jobs and need to sell their homes or face losing them to the banks. She expects the problem to intensify next year.

"This is where it's going to get scary," she said. "My heart breaks for a lot of these people."

Reprinted with permission from Sun-Sentinel. Paul Owers can be reached at Powers@Sunsentinel.com or 561-243-6529.

South Florida housing market remains conflicted: Sales soaring but prices plunging

Cash buyers and investors are returning to the market. And first-time buyers are taking advantage of the bargains, seller concessions, mortgage rates of below 5 percent and an $8,000 tax credit that expires Dec. 1.

By Paul Owers | South Florida Sun-Sentinel

8:46 PM EDT, April 23, 2009

Home buyers are seizing the opportunities in South Florida's housing market as deeply discounted prices and historically low mortgage rates drive sales. Many sellers, however, are reeling, not able to unload their homes for close to what they paid.

Until the sharp price declines ease - and that may take awhile - the region's housing market won't begin to recover from a slump that's nearing 40 months.

Sales of existing homes rose 47 percent in Broward County in March, to 680 from 463 a year ago, the Florida Association of Realtors said Thursday. The median price plunged 30 percent, to $219,500 from $311,400 last year.

In Palm Beach County, sales rose 20 percent, to 685 from 572 a year ago. The median price plunged 29 percent, to $228,100 from $320,200 last year.

Cash buyers and investors are returning to the market. And first-time buyers are taking advantage of the bargains, seller concessions, mortgage rates of below 5 percent and an $8,000 tax credit that expires Dec. 1.

"The combination of much lower home prices and record low interest rates represents affordability that home buyers haven't seen in a long, long time," said Greg McBride, senior financial analyst with Bankrate.com in North Palm Beach. "Even in a lousy economy, that will add a boost to home sales for the balance of 2009."

Still, the supply of available homes in South Florida, while decreasing, remains at a high level, weighed down by a steady stream of foreclosures and short sales.

Broward County has 28,898 homes, townhouses and condos for sale, down 19 percent from the end of November, according to Condo Vultures, a Bal Harbour-based real estate consulting firm. Palm Beach County has 26,808 properties, a 10 percent dip.

When banks slash prices on distressed properties, it reduces the values of homes nearby. That, in turn, feeds the foreclosure cycle. The price declines lead to homeowners walking away, frustrated that they owe more than their properties are worth.

Moody's Economy.com, of West Chester, Pa., says Broward's median home price might not bottom out until falling below $130,000 - which would mean a decline approaching 70 percent from the November 2005 peak of $391,100.

Palm Beach County's median is expected to bottom out in the $150,000 range – roughly a 65 percent drop from the 2005 peak of $421,500.

"We don't think house prices will rise in a meaningful way until the end of 2011 or toward the beginning of 2012," said Chris Lafakis of Economy.com.

Meanwhile, the sales and price trends held true for the two counties' existing condominium markets in March.

Broward sales rose 28 percent, while the median price plummeted 40 percent to $82,100. Palm Beach County sales increased 17 percent, while the median dropped 33 percent to $99,800. That's the first time it has been under $100,000 since the Realtors' group started tracking condo sales in 2006.

Rising unemployment is expected to affect housing, particularly people who already live here and want to move into larger homes. But for now, at the height of the spring home-selling season, real estate agents across South Florida report increased showings and more interest from buyers as prices fall.

Agent Randy Bianchi said he had four showings on a waterfront home Thursday. "I haven't had four showings on it in three years," he said.

Lewis Lopater recently bought on a three-bedroom house in Palm Beach Gardens. He paid $174,000 for a home that was listed last summer for $229,900.

Lopater and his wife, Dawn, have a monthly mortgage payment of about $1,400, only $200 more than they paid in rent.

"It's well worth it to have a fenced-in back yard and a piece of the pie, so to speak," said Lopater, 48, a father of two and a food service employee at Boca Raton Community Hospital. "I really lucked out."

Nationally, home sales fell 3 percent from February. The median sales price plunged to $175,200, from $200,100 a year earlier. In Florida, sales rose 30 percent, while the median dropped 30 percent to $141,300. The median means half sold for more, half for less.

"The general public is starting to get it, that it's a good time to buy," said Michele Bellisari, an agent in Broward and Palm Beach counties. "Buyers are starting to have more confidence."