Orlando Real Estate Voice, Short Sale Expert & Specialist

With the number of foreclosures on the market at record highs, many troubled homeowners are looking for other options to avoid the damage to their credit and to simply get out from underneath their home loan as soon as possible. They often have a better chance of qualifying for a new mortgage soon after completing a short sale than if they were to go through a foreclosure. Banks too sometimes prefer an owner to do a short sale because it saves them from the expensive cost of a foreclosure. As a result, there are more homeowners who are avoiding foreclosure by going through a short sale.

Last year, short sales accounted for about 10% of the number of homes on the market nationwide. That figure has increased by 2% and short sales now account for about 12% of the homes on the market. In some states – such as Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, California and Colorado – short sales have become still more prevalent. In California, for example, short sales accounted for about 25% of homes sold in the second quarter of 2011, a 7% increase year-over-year. In Colorado, they accounted for 17% of homes sold (also a 7% increase year over year). Bank of America expects to complete at least 100,000 short sales this year, which is twice as many as it completed in 2009. A Well Fargo senior vice president claims that short sales have increased recently because there are not as many bank-owned homes on the market in some areas, leaving eager buyers to actively seek out short sales.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert and Foreclosure Specialist who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, East Orlando, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Winter Park, Oviedo, Apopka, Lake Mary, Clermont, Ocoee Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area.
Please visit:
Avoid Foreclosure / Short Sale Help http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com, or http://ShortSellMyOrlandoHome.com
Our Website http://JerryLaRose.com or www.JerrySellsOrlando.com, or http://OrlandoRealEstateVoice.com ,
If you’re a Buyer looking for Great Deals – http://InvestmentPropertyDealsOrlando.com
Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.
P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange, Seminole, Polk, Lake, Osceola and Brevard County Florida and Orlando, East Orlando, St. Cloud, Davenport, Clermont, Longwood, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Apopka, Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent and realtor who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. The short sale process is complicated and we can help simplify it.
We also have now expanded to help homeowners to Stop Foreclosure in Brevard County Florida. Servicing Melbourne, Coco, Coco Beach, Satellite Beach, Palm Bay, Indian Harbour Beach, South Patrick Shores, Palm Shores, Rockledge, Cocoa West, Merritt Island, Port Saint John and Titusville Florida
Call us at 407-580-7011 or email at jerry@JerryLaRose.com to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.
Orlando Short Sales, expert, specialist, Realtor, Keller Williams Realty, agent, broker, short sale, stop foreclosure

Sales of homes in some stage of foreclosure declined in the first three months of the year, but they still accounted for 28 percent of all home sales — a share nearly six times higher than what it would be in a healthy housing market.

Foreclosure sales, which include homes purchased after they received a notice of default or were repossessed by lenders, hit the highest share of overall sales in a year during the first quarter, foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday.

“It’s an astronomically high number,” said Rick Sharga, a senior vice president at RealtyTrac. “In a normal market, you’re looking at the percentage of homes sold in foreclosure to be below 5 percent.”

The pace at which homes are entering the foreclosure process has slowed in recent months amid bank and court delays. But distressed properties remain a fixture of a housing market still searching for a sustained recovery. The properties, often in need of repair, typically sell at a discount, weakening prices for other types of homes.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

As a slice of all home purchases, foreclosure sales peaked two years ago at 37.4 percent. In the first quarter, they rose from 27 percent in prior quarter, but fell from 29 percent a year earlier, according to RealtyTrac.

Sales of foreclosure properties didn’t fare much better than other types of homes, however.

In all, 158,434 homes in some stage of foreclosure were sold in the first quarter, down 16 percent from the last three months of 2010 and down 36 percent versus a year ago. Sales of all other types of homes also declined sharply, according to RealtyTrac’s figures, which differ from other home-sales estimates.

While the number of bank-owned properties sold declined, they grew as a share of all home sales. Bank-owned homes accounted for nearly 19 percent of all sales, up from 17 percent in the fourth quarter and up from 18 percent a year ago, the firm said.

That’s not good news for the housing market.

Story: Bill would let appraisers ’round up’ home values

RealtyTrac estimates there are 872,000 homes that have been repossessed by lenders, but have yet to be sold. At the first-quarter’s sales pace, it will take three years to clear the inventory of 1.9 million properties already in some stage of foreclosure.

For bank-owned properties alone, that amounts to a 2-year supply.

“Clearly, the housing market is not out of the woods,” Sharga said.

Homebuyers who purchased a bank-owned home in the first quarter saved an average of 35 percent versus the average price of other types of homes, RealtyTrac said.

That discount is unchanged from the previous quarter, but up from an average of 33 percent a year ago.

Buyers who snapped up other homes in the foreclosure process, including short sales, got an average discount of 9 percent, the firm said. That’s down from an average of 13 percent in the fourth quarter and an average of 14 percent a year ago. In a short sale, the seller and their lender agree to sell the home for less than what is owned on the mortgage.

The biggest foreclosure discounts were to be had in Ohio, where foreclosure properties sold for an average of 41 percent less than other types of homes, RealtyTrac said.

The average sales price of a foreclosure property was $168,321, down 1.9 percent from the fourth quarter and 1.5 percent from the first quarter last year, the firm said.

At a state level, Nevada led the nation with foreclosure sales accounting for 53 percent of all home sales, RealtyTrac said. That was down from 59 percent the year before.

The state has the highest foreclosure rate in the nation and an inventory of nearly 28,000 bank-owned properties on bank’s books. Buyers scooping up foreclosure properties there in the first quarter got an average discount of nearly 18 percent compared to the average sales price of other types of homes, RealtyTrac said.

In California, foreclosure sales accounted for 45 percent of all home sales in the first quarter, down from nearly 48 percent a year earlier. The average foreclosure property sold for nearly 34 percent less than the average sales price of homes not in foreclosure.

In Arizona, foreclosure sales represented 45 percent of all home sales for the quarter, down from 47 percent a year earlier.

Several other states had foreclosure sales that accounted for at least one quarter of all home sales in the first quarter: Idaho, Florida, Michigan, Oregon, Virginia, Colorado, Illinois, Georgia and Ohio.

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, East Orlando, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Winter Park, Oviedo, Apopka, Lake Mary, Clermont, Ocoee  Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area.

Please visit:

Avoid Foreclosure / Short Sale Help  http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com, or http://ShortSellMyOrlandoHome.com

Our Website http://JerryLaRose.com or www.JerrySellsOrlando.com,  or http://OrlandoRealEstateVoice.com ,

If you’re a Buyer looking for Great Deals –  http://InvestmentPropertyDealsOrlando.com

Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange, Seminole, Polk, Lake  or Osceola County Florida and Orlando, East Orlando, St. Cloud,  Davenport, Clermont, Longwood, Windermere, Winter Garden,  Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland,  Apopka,  Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. The short sale process is complicated and we can help simplify it.

Call us at 407-580-7011 or email at jerry@JerryLaRose.com to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales

A wave of foreclosures is forcing down home prices in most major U.S. cities. But economists and real estate agents are noticing what they call a key first step for any housing recovery: a drop in the glut of homes for sale in markets hit hardest by foreclosures.

Low prices are leading investors to snap up foreclosed homes in Detroit, Las Vegas, Miami, Phoenix and Tampa. Those cut-rate sales are reducing prices in the short run. Yet they’re also thinning the supply of homes – clearing the way for higher prices in the long run.

For some buyers, the deals are now too good to pass up. A studio apartment on the Las Vegas strip that cost $500,000 at the height of the housing boom is now selling for roughly one-third that price. Half the homes listed in the Tampa Bay area are selling for less than $100,000, not far from some of Florida’s top Gulf Coast beaches.

Such sales have helped shrink the combined supply of unsold homes in those five cities by 13 percent over the past year, according to local listing data analyzed by The Associated Press. Home prices in each of those markets are at or below 2002 levels, according to the latest reading of the Standard & Poor’s/Case Shiller 20-city home price index.

“If we were to see several consecutive months of supply getting smaller, it would point to an improving housing market,” said Celia Chen, senior director at Moody’s Analytics. “Even if it is investors buying them, they are renting them out in hopes that prices in the next several years will rise.”

Economists caution that a second wave of foreclosures, those that have been delayed by banks and backlogged courts, could throw the housing market back into turmoil. And few see home prices rebounding before the end of this year.

Home prices fell from January to February in 19 of the 20 metro markets tracked by the Case-Shiller index. At least 10 major metro areas are at their lowest point since the housing bubble burst. The index, released Tuesday, is slightly above the level reached in April 2009, the lowest point since the downturn began.

Getting rid of foreclosures and other risky properties is necessary for the market to turn around. When foreclosures and distressed properties are sold, home prices fall.

But as the supply of cheap homes shrinks, prices stabilize. Homeowners who had put off moving because they didn’t want to sell during the downturn grow confident that they can fetch a decent price. That prompts more buying and selling. Prices rise more.

Most of the current foreclosure sales involve investors: Private equity firms; foreign and out-of-state buyers seeking vacation houses; individual investors hoping to rent out or quickly sell properties for a profit.

Many are scooping up cheap homes with cash, said Andrew Duncan, a Realtor who runs a Keller Williams franchise in Tampa. In March, 35 percent of previously occupied homes sold were bought entirely in cash, according to the National Association of Realtors.

“When the bargains do hit, there’s more than one buyer looking for that bargain,” Duncan said. “Buyers are losing out left and right when they bid because it’s just so competitive.”

Foreclosures have flooded the market in Miami. Three out of five homes sold there are foreclosures or short sales. (Short sales occur when lenders allow homes to be sold for less than what’s owed on the mortgage.) Such sales have helped lower the median home price by 19 percent in the past year, to $159,800 in March.

At the same time, the supply of Miami-area homes for sale has dropped nearly 24 percent. It would take just seven months to clear those homes at the current sales pace. That’s down from a 17-month supply just six months ago.

In Tampa, it would take just six months to clear the supply of unsold homes off the market. That’s down from about eight months a year ago and 25 months in January 2008. Detroit’s inventory of homes for sale has fallen 17 percent in the last year.

In Phoenix, the number of homes for sale has dropped nearly 10 percent over the past year. The median sales price of a single-family home sold last month was $118,500 – down more than 12 percent from a year ago.

The supply of homes in Las Vegas could be cleared in less than seven months at the current sales pace. That’s down from a 26-month supply in December 2007.

“It’s like a feeding frenzy when a home goes on the market now,” said Mike Shannon, a Detroit real estate agent who specializes in foreclosures. “We’re getting a few dozen offers on some homes in a matter of days.”

The thinning supply is due, in part, to a lull in foreclosures. They’ve dropped more than 56 percent in Tampa and nearly 64 percent in Miami. In those areas, the number of homes receiving an initial foreclosure notice has plummeted.

That could change quickly. Many banks are revisiting thousands of foreclosure cases. They’ve been spurred into action by federal regulators who have ordered reviews of how foreclosures were carried out over the past two years.

The logjam has been compounded in states such as Florida, New York and New Jersey, where a judge must approve foreclosures.

There are 1.2 million foreclosures expected this year nationally, according to foreclosure tracker RealtyTrac Inc., and the decline in foreclosure filings is only temporary, said Mark Vitner, senior economist at Wells Fargo.

“The problems are still there,” Vitner said. “There are fewer early-stage delinquencies, so we are moving in the right direction. But the slowdown in foreclosures is just drawing the process out.”

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Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of Real Estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, St. Cloud, East Orlando, Longwood, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Winter Park, Oviedo, Apopka, Lake Mary, Clermont, Ocoee Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area.
Please visit:
Avoid Foreclosure / Short Sale Help http://OrlandoShortSaleExpert.com, or http://ShortSellMyOrlandoHome.com
Our Website http://JerryLaRose.com or www.JerrySellsOrlando.com, or http://OrlandoRealEstateVoice.com ,
If you’re a Buyer looking for Great Deals – http://InvestmentPropertyDealsOrlando.com
Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.
P.S. If you are listing your home as a short sale in Orange, Seminole, Polk, Lake or Osceola County Florida and Orlando, East Orlando, St. Cloud, Davenport, Clermont, Longwood, Windermere, Winter Garden, Kissimmee, Winter Park, Altamonte Springs, Maitland, Apopka, Lake Mary, Oviedo or Ocoee Florida make sure you hire an agent who knows how to do short sales and has the experience to get the job done. We are doing successful short sale packages. The short sale process is complicated and we can help simplify it.
Call us at 407-580-7011 or email at jerry@JerryLaRose.com to find out more about Orange County Short Sales and Orlando Area Short Sales.

Anyone looking to buy a home in Orlando, East Orlando or any of the surrounding communities such as Windermere, Winter Garden, Ocoee, Winter Park, Kissimmee, Saint CLoud, or Lake Nona please give me a call because I have some terrific deals. I found this photos recently and I Love it. So, the answer is NO it’s not real and don’t ask where you can find it. 

However, I’m seeing short sales and foreclosures right now that are 1/2 price compared to only 3 years ago.  I’m hearing people saying that we are not at the bottom and they’re going to wait. Well, very simply if you wait for another $10,000 – $20,000 break in price your thinking is wrong. Let me tell you why.

  Interest rates is the answer.  Interest rates will rise and trying to save $10-$20 thousand will be nothing compared to a 1/2 point to a point higher in interest rates. Do the math. When you’re done doing the math, give me a call and I’ll find you that perfect home at a huge price reduction at the lowest interest rate. Don’t wait for the media to say it’s turning around, because by then it’ll be too late and you’ve missed the bottom. So CALL TODAY! 407-580-7011

One way first-time homebuyers can keep housing costs down is to get a great deal on a foreclosure. Right? Wrong, says author, real estate attorney and investor James Randel.

“First time homebuyers have their own issues,” says Randel. “To put foreclosure risks on top of that is imprudent.”

“Buying foreclosures isn’t as easy as it looks,” says Randel, “There are a number of risks associated with it.”

People think foreclosures are a goldmine, low-hanging fruit, but the only ones who tend to do well are experienced buyers and professionals who treat buying foreclosures as a business.

According to Randel, here are the top five reasons why foreclosures carry too much risk for first-time homebuyers.

•1. Damaged goods. When people get in trouble, they tend not to care for the property. And because of anger and frustration, they may damage the property deliberately.

•2. As is, where is. In a normal transaction, there are seller’s disclosures. Sellers are liable for fraud if they lie, but that due diligence doesn’t exist in foreclosures because there is no contract with the seller.

•3. No Title, No Recourse. You get a title search in a normal transaction after your offer is accepted. In foreclosures, you do the title search before your bid is accepted. “If you don’t do the title search, you may prevail at the auction but be subject to superior liens like tax liens,” warns Randel. “People say, ‘I may not get the deal so I don’t want to spend the money for a title search – that’s backwards thinking.”

•4. Evictions. You have to determine the homeowner is out of the property. The homeowner may still have personal property or still live on the premises, and it could take time and money to get rid of them.

•5. Bidding Fever. Auctions are designed to get yo excited. Some people don’t go mentally prepared to an auction in the right way. The auction could take place on the courthouse steps or in a courtroom, but the tempo matters. If it’s fast-paced, don’t get caught up in the excitement and energy or you’re likely to overbid.

“The best way to buy a foreclosure is to let the bank take title and try to buy directly from the bank — before it goes on the auction block. Those properties are called REOs, real estate-owned, explains Randel. “If that’s not possible, prepare for an auction. There are websites that notify the public when a lis pendens (pending action) has been filed. That’s a notice of foreclosure.

“I recommend to investor clients to get to know bankers in your geographic area, and they’ll tell you this property has problems.”

The best short cut to buying a foreclosure is to work with a Realtor who knows the market and can help you pick the right property for your needs.

The nation’s foreclosure hemorrhage slowed a bit last month, according to Foreclosures.com. Lenders repossessed 74,570 homes following foreclosure in April, down more than 5 percent from March. April pre-foreclosures dropped 7.52 percent from March too, according to California-based Foreclosures.com foreclosure information specialists.“The sky isn’t falling, and the bottom of the housing market is in sight,” says Alexis McGee, president of Foreclosures.com.Foreclosures.com says its analysis is based on the number of formal notices filed against a property during the foreclosure process. That can include notice of default, notice of foreclosure auction, and trustee’s deeds/REOs (real estate owned by lender through foreclosure).

In the 1st quarter of the year, 2.8 of every 1,000 households ended up back in lenders’ hands, up from 2.7 in 4th quarter 2007 (213,927 1st quarter filings vs. 197,736 in 4th quarter 2007). Quarter over quarter, 17 states actually had fewer REO filings in April.

“That’s the good news. The bad news is that still 3.8 of every 1,000 households nationwide (288,497 REO filings) have been lost to foreclosure so far this year,”  “Another 696,925 pre-foreclosure filings – 9.4 of every 1,000 households – have been recorded year-to-date with 179,046 filings in April.

“The numbers tell us the economy isn’t dead,”   “U.S. gross domestic product was not negative as many had speculated and grew 0.6 percent in the first quarter. Combine that with positive moves by government and industry – including the still-evolving FHA reform and tax credits, along with federal tax rebates – are making a difference. The S&P 500, after dropping nearly 19 percent Oct. 9 to March 9, has since rebounded 11 percent. New jobless claims were lower than expected, and even Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is upbeat, predicting a pick-up in growth later this year.” REO filings YTD • Florida, 24,764 (4 per 1,000)Pre-foreclosure filings by household YTD• Florida, 25.6 per 1,000 (162,316 filings, leading the nation in total number of filings)

About the author:  Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of real estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs.  Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.Jerry LaRose, P.A., ABR, GRI, e-PRO, CLHMS, REALTOR® 407-580-7011(Copyright © 2008 By Jerry LaRose, P.A. All Rights Reserved.)

Just a note on perspective for some of the foreclosure news you are seeing.  

Is it rough out there?  Well consider this, in a news article today (see below) there are apparently frightening numbers on forclosure rates – ” U.S. Foreclosures Jump 57%” .  Awful state of affairs – right?  How about this headline for the same article – “99.8% of U.S. Households NOT in Forclosure”  Amazing? Can’t be true? Check the math.

Use the numbers provided in the article – “More than 234,000 properties were in some stage of foreclosure, or one in every 538 U.S. households… “.  Pull out your calculator and work out the percentage – .001859 or .1859% (1 divided by 538).  Yep – that is LESS than two-tenths of one percent.

Well that is the national number, you might say, but Florida is much worse. You are absolutely right!  Here is what the article says ” Florida had the third-highest rate, one filing for every 282 households…“. Yes much worse – .003546 or .3546%. LESS than four-tenths of one percent. So the Florida headline should read – “99.6% of Florida Households NOT in Forclosure”.

This is not to diminish the real pain and financial peril faced by tens of thousands of homeowners in or facing foreclosure. There is a serious financial and market correction underway in housing and the broader economy. But it is not the end of the world. If you really want to see what a crisis is all about check the numbers from the Great Depression.  Nearly 1 in 10 owners was in foreclosure in 1932 and 1933. In the 1920′s there were over 40,000 real estate licensees in Florida – by 1941 the number was 1,200.

In 2008 there is no doubt we face a tough and challenging market.  Is success still possible?  YES.  It will take very consistent, very focused, and very hard work to produce results. You CAN do this!  But not if you let the headlines drag you down.  

About the author: 

Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of real estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs.  Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.

Jerry LaRose, P.A., ABR, GRI, e-PRO, CLHMS, REALTOR® 407-580-7011

If you’re facing Foreclosure….. 

1. 1. Do not pay doctor bills or credit card debt ahead of the mortgage. Keep mortgage payments current as possible.
2. 2. Negotiate with your lender to restructure your mortgage. If the loan is guaranteed by a federal or state agency, the lender may be required to grant assistance, or provide other options, to avoid foreclosure.
3. 3. Sell the house before it goes into foreclosure. If your mortgage is higher than the home’s market value, you may be able to persuade the lender to allow you to sell it for less and forgive the rest of the debt. (this is called a short sale)

If you’re about to lose your home, filing for bankruptcy can stop the foreclosure process and allow you more time to try to work out a plan to keep the home. Get legal advise from an attorney specializing in bankruptcy.

For more information on foreclosures feel free to give me a call.

About the author: 

Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of real estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs.  Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.Jerry LaRose, P.A., ABR, GRI, e-PRO, CLHMS, REALTOR® 407-580-7011(Copyright © 2008 By Jerry LaRose, P.A. All Rights Reserved.)

Should you buy foreclosed homes? Good Question. View this video to give you a bit of a heads up on what to expect.

About the author:
Jerry LaRose is an Orlando Area Residential Real Estate Expert, who can assist you with the purchase and/or sale of real estate in Orlando, Windermere, Winter Garden Florida or any place in the country. Jerry has created a team of professionals throughout Orlando and the country to ensure that you enjoy a smooth transition to your new area. Please visit www.JerrySellsOrlando.com for your real estate needs. Please give me a call if you have questions about the Orlando and Central Florida real estate market.
Jerry LaRose, P.A., ABR, GRI, e-PRO, CLHMS, REALTOR® 407-580-7011
(Copyright © 2008 By Jerry LaRose, P.A. All Rights Reserved.)