Miami Condo Hotels, Miami Beach Real Estate

Miami Beach Real Estate Developer to Build New Condo Hotel

The Related Group, which recently scrapped plans for a condominium tower on the oceanfront site, will now build a hotel in South Beach with Orient-Express.

Related led the way in Florida's condominium boom before that market hit a severe downturn and will now be part of a $150 million project which will mark the first new South Florida project in three years for Related.

The Related Group will be a full partner with Orient-Express in building the new hotel and have recently canceled sales contracts for the planned Viceroy Miami condo-hotel tower on the site at 801 South Pointe Drive.

Full Article...Miami Condo Hotels, Miami Beach Real Estate

Florida Foreclosure Listings, Miami Real EState

Below you will find a link to a list of 50 Miami homes that have been significantly discounted because they are in some stage of foreclosure process. Our Florida foreclosure listings consist of Miami homes in foreclosure, Miami short sales and distressed properties in Miami. These Miami homes are in various stages of foreclosure such as pre foreclosures and foreclosure auctions. For additional information on any of the Miami homes in foreclosure shown below please call our Miami real estate office at 305-673-3303 to speak with a professional real estate agent.

Click here for.......Free Foreclosure Listings in Miami

Florida Foreclosures, Miami Beach Real Estate

Fighting Florida Foreclosures, Help from the County?

Depending on the results of a requested report, Miami-Dade County mat begin buying and refurbishing Florida foreclosed homes. On Tuesday the commission passed a resolution directing Mayor Carlos Alvarez to develop within 60 days a plan to utilize federal grants or other funds to purchase the Florida homes in foreclosure. Commissioner Rebeca Sosa stressed that, should the plan move forward, the county must work to protect buyers.

Miami Homes, Miami Beach Real Estate

Both New Home Sales and Prices Drop in May

In May, sales of new homes tumbled for the sixth time in seven months while median prices kept dropping; emphasizing the depth of the nation's housing woes.

The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that new homes were sold at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 512,000 units in May which was down 2.5% from the April level. The median price of a new homes sold fell to $231,000 last month, down 5.7% from a year ago.

The report on new home activity in May followed reports Tuesday that showed record home price drops in April, showing that the nation's housing slump is not only deepening but also widening to include previously untouched parts of the country.

Full Article...Miami Homes, Miami Beach Real Estate

US Housing Market, Miami Beach Real Estate

US Housing Slump, Close to a Recession?

An academic study showed Monday, the bottom to the housing slump is nowhere in sight and, if history is any guide, a recession is mostly likely lurking around the corner.

The study done by Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies painted a dreary picture of the current housing downturn, labeling it as possibly being "the worst in a generation" in its "The State of the Nation's Housing 2008" report.

Existing home sales are at all-time lows since after World War II, while home price declines and mortgage defaults are the worst on record, the study noted.

"We've never has so much information or data in uncharted water," said Eric Belsky, the Joint Center's executive director. "A recovery is not anywhere near in sight."

Six of the last seven housing downturns were followed by a recession he noted, usually within two years. However, Housing starts typically rebounded strongly after inventory fell and new home sales picked up, after the recession ended.

The report’s authors did not give a time frame for a housing turnaround, but expect immigration growth to be a key factor in rejuvenating the market.

Miami Condos, Miami Beach Real Estate

Miami Beach's Artécity Asks for Loan Extension

The developer of the Artécity, a Miami Beach real estate condo project, seeks to make over a whole block on Miami Beach and said it is switching contractors and seeking a loan extension from Corus Bank.

There has been barely any sign of construction work on the 202-unit project, located a couple blocks from the beach along 21st Street, since March, when developer Artécity Park dismissed the general contractor.

The 63 unit converted Miami Beach hotel Artécity Governor, which had 33 buyer deeds issued starting on Feb. 2, property records indicate, is the only part hat is completed.

Buyers in that building have brought twelve lawsuits against the project, with most of them settling out of court.

Full Article...Miami Condos, Artecity Asks for Loan Extension

Florida Banks, Miami Real Estate

Banks Hit Hard by Florida Real Estate Downturn

The Florida housing downturn continues to squash bankers: Overdue loans, mostly Miami real estate related, have nearly quadrupled the past year in the Sunshine State.

Not only that, but the state's lenders have unusually low cash reserves to protect them against mortgage defaults. The first three months of this year, 41% of Florida-chartered banks were unprofitable, twice the number of banks that bled red ink last year.

The reports released over the last week by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation are responsible for these not-so-encouraging development statistics. A chain reaction provoked by a two-year plunge in real estate values is to blame experts say. It's not just problem home mortgages, but also developers defaulting on loans used to buy land and finance condo towers.

Full Article...Florida Banks, Miami Beach Real Estate

Florida Foreclosures, Miami Beach Real Estate

Florida Foreclosures are Increasing

The Miami Herald reported today that the rapidly declining property values pushed 77,000 homeowners into foreclosure during this latest surge in home-loan delinquencies we saw the first quarter of the year, a signal that instability in the Florida housing market is far from over.

According to a report released Thursday by the Mortgage Bankers Association., Florida ranked second in the country in failing loans and California led the nation with 109,000 foreclosures. Texas, Michigan and Ohio, were the states with the next highest numbers which saw no more than 24,000 foreclosures during the same period.

Jay Brinkmann, vice president for research and economics with the MBA, said ''The problems in California and Florida are extraordinary; they are the main drivers of the national trend.''

One investor was forced to walk away from a $1.4 million home he began constructing on a Miami Beach waterfront home in 2004. He went into foreclosure in April and is negotiating a short sale, in which a lender settles for a partial payment of the loan.

Foreclosure Scam, Miami Beach Real Estate

Advisory Issued on Foreclosure Scam, Florida Foreclosures

A consumer advisory on mortgage fraud and foreclosure-related scams has been issued Attorney General Bill McCollum. The Attorney General encouraged Floridians to educate themselves about the various types of mortgage fraud and learn about the foreclosure process to protect them from becoming potential victims, noting that Florida now ranks first in the nation for the number of home foreclosures.

“As we see the number of Florida foreclosures continue to increase, we have unfortunately also seen the number of mortgage-related scams grow and threaten more Floridians,” said Attorney General McCollum. “We will continue to fight these fraudulent operations with every resource we have available to us, whether it is litigation, consumer education, or legislation with the help of our leaders in the Florida Legislature.”

Full Article...Foreclosure Scam, Florida Foreclosure

Real Estate Foreclosure, Real Estate Market

Neighborhood Foreclosures Affect the Price of Your Home!

Because the value of a home is calculated on the base comparable sales in that area, if there is a foreclosure even in the vicinity of a home it can affect its value. One may still suffer a loss while trying to sell a home or while opting for refinancing, even if their credit is good. Invariably in an area which has witnessed a foreclosure, the value will come down.

An ailing real estate market manages to infect the whole economy, neighborhood by neighborhood and this makes it difficult for the borrowers to draw out cash from their homes. According to experts, if the borrowers are not able provide finance at lesser rates then this could lead to an increase in the number of foreclosures. Florida, California and Nevada are the three states that have seen the inflated prices of homes dropped the most.

Full article...Real Estate Foreclosure, Miami Beach Real Estate

Foreclosure Homes, Miami Beach Real Estate

Huge Foreclosure Case, Nineteen Indicted

On Monday, Federal officials announced the indictment of 19 people in what they call the largest "foreclosure rescue" scam in the nation. This foreclosure scam allegedly took in more than $12 million and affected more than 100 foreclosure homes.

In Sacramento, the mortgage-fraud case was announced at the federal courthouse where the defendants were charged by a grand jury with mail fraud, money laundering and conspiracy to commit both.

The Sacramento Bee, in February, obtained a search warrant for the case, which victimized homeowners throughout the nation.

Full article...19 Indicted, Miami Beach Real Estate

Florida Foreclosure Listings Rise

Florida Foreclosures Rise 158%

The Florida foreclosure rate climbed 158% over last year which was much was much greater than the rest in the nation.

The Miami Herald reported today that the number of Florida foreclosures jumped 57 % in January compared to a year ago. A mortgage research firm said Monday, that Florida's Cape Coral-Fort Myers had the highest rate of homes in foreclosure in the nation.

Lenders are being forced to taking possession of Florida homes that could not be sold at auctions.

Click her for full article…Foreclosure Homes Rise 158%

Florida Foreclosures Rank Highest in U.S.

You can find six of Florida's largest metropolitan areas among the 25 U.S. regions with the highest foreclosure activity, with Ft Lauderdale ranking in the top 10.

There were 24,004 foreclosure filings in Orlando, Florida, a nearly 118 % increase from the number of filings for the same period a year ago, and about 2% of the real estate market, according to RealtyTrac.

The latest foreclosure filings have been ranked based on the percentage of total households facing foreclosure. Miami, the highest amount of foreclosures in Florida, ranked at eight with 51,662 properties that were in some stage of foreclosure. These figures were up 106 % over 2006 and represent more than 2.7 % of the total market.

Full article, click here....Florida Foreclosure Filings Rank amongst the Highest in the U.S .

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Foreclosure Auctions in Miami, Miami Foreclosure

Miami Foreclosure Auctions are Flooding County Offices

Many of the county offices have been forced to expand their services to handle the amount of Broward and Miami foreclosures listings that are coming in this month.

A foreclosure auction is a lender's final attempt to recover at least a portion of the amount loaned on a home, before taking the property back.

Miami Herald reported Thursday that there were more than 1,000 foreclosed homes predicted to hit the auction block in February which has forced the County clerk’s office in Miami to increasing the number of days its hold auctions....

Click here for full article.....Miami Foreclosure Auctions

Florida Home Loans Get Thougher

Even with the Florida tax cuts, rate cuts and recent Florida real estate property price declines, most Lenders are making it harder for potential buyers to qualify for a mortgage.

Example: For a medium priced home of $362,500 in Miami-Dade County, this new requirement by Countrywide means buyers have to add an additional $18,125 down payment to obtain a home loan.

Click her for complete article: Florida Home Loans, Miami Real Estate

Florida Foreclosures, Short Sales and Distressed Properties

Many potential buyers in the South Florida real estate market are looking for possible short sales, pre-foreclosures and foreclosed properties. Well lucky for them that the State of Florida is one of the states with the highest number of distressed properties.

But the question is, “Where are these distressed properties in Florida located”? Below you will see a break down: