Friday, March 14, 2014

Buy a house in bitcoin?






Virtual currency for a physical house?

 The seller of a Southampton, N.Y., home is asking $799,000 for his ranch-style four-bedroom home — or its equivalent value in bitcoin. It's one of the first homes on the market testing the digital currency, which was introduced in 2009 and is not backed by a central bank or government. The virtual currency is created by a computing process known as "mining" and can be traded online through unregulated Internet exchanges. "There's room for more than one currency," says Philipp Preuss, the home's seller, who says he would also accept a combination of bitcoin and cash. The bitcoin price, he says, will likely be determined by the currency's average exchange rate on the day of closing.

Bitcoins Will Still Be Your Future Currency

It's been a tough couple of weeks for Bitcoin. Hackers have had their way with three Bitcoin sites that hold customer funds, and one, for all intents and purposes, has gone out of business. Poloniex had $50,000 of Bitcoin stolen; Flexcoin reported $600,000 in theft; and Mt. Gox -- the first and at one time, the largest exchange -- reportedly had $400 million stolen, which caused it to cease business and declare bankruptcy. This turmoil has sent the former golden child of hipster investors plummeting from the nosebleed heights of $1,242 per coin to a low of $419.

A range of businesses accept the currency.

A casino owner-turned-commercial developer is asking $7.85 million to sell a Las Vegas home, and he's willing to accept the online currency bitcoin for the deal. "There are a bunch of people who have bitcoins, and they're dying for a place to spend it," Tosh told the Las Vegas Review-Journa.

A California Lamborghini dealership sold a $103,000 Tesla to a Florida man for 91.4 bitcoin, the Review-Journal reported, and a Canadian man listed his Alberta home for the bitcoin equivalent of $405,000.

The currency hit a watermark when Bank of America Merrill Lynch said this month that one bitcoin could have a maximum value of $1,300, or more than the price of an ounce of gold.

Technology moves so fast these days that those of us who don't live, breath and drink it on a daily basis often can't see the virtual forest for the trees. So before you dismiss Bitcoin as a fad or a case of technology run amok, take a minute to see who is championing it and what their track record is in successfully envisioning the future.

How can you make money with bitcoin? ( Watch the Video )

Luis Suarez
RE/MAX Premier Associates - Sunny Isles Beach
17600 Collins Avenue
Sunny Isles Beach, FL 33160
Direct: 954-673-9576
Office: 954-384-6803Fax: 305-384-6661
             

Monday, February 24, 2014

Freddie Mac declares South Florida counties unaffordable


Homes in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties are just “not affordable,” according to a report released by mortgage giant Freddie Mac yesterday that ranked South Florida low on its affordability index.
Any place that scores lower than 100 on Freddie Mac’s index is considered unaffordable. South Florida earned a 72. But what does that score really mean?
Let’s put it into real estate terms.
Housing should cost families only 28 percent of their monthly income, according to traditional standards. The reality is, South Florida families are paying more than that, the Palm Beach Post reported.
A family that put 10 percent down on their home, landed a mortgage rate of 4.29 percent and paid tax and insurance equal to 2.8 percent of the home’s value would pay nearly $1,600 a month in principal, the Post reported. That’s several hundred dollars more than 28 percent of the median price for South Florida homes at $255,000, or $1,150 per month.
“If (interest) rates continue their upward trend, it will be difficult for many families to purchase a home without seeing some income growth,” Freddie Mac’s chief economist, Frank Nothaft, told the Post. “Rising home prices and interest rates along with little to no income growth has resulted in a substantial erosion of homebuyer affordability over the past year.”
Frank Nothaft of Freddie Mac
Frank Nothaft of Freddie Mac

Listing Photos: What to Look for When Shopping

Listing Photos: What to Look for When Shopping 
BY 
Real Estate Agent with RE/MAX Premier Associates
Listing Photos: What to Look for When Shopping
 
These days, very little is left to the imagination when it comes to browsing homes for sale online. With virtual tours, professional photos and mapped locations, it's easy to see what you might be getting – before you ever set foot in a potential purchase. Technology certainly has its advantages, doesn't it?

These listing features help you, the home buyer, narrow down your home search and direct your real estate agent to specific properties. And although you shouldn't risk ruling out an otherwise perfect property based solely on its online reputation – hey, even houses have bad days – photos and videos can help save time and energy when it comes to building your short list of homes to tour.

So what should you really be looking for based on these photos, videos and mapping tools? Start with:
  • Layout. Does it meet your space needs? Is it OK that your must-have second bathroom is in the basement?
  • Potential Repairs. Have the original hardwood floors seen better days? Are you up for the challenge of rehabbing?
  • Yard maintenance. Does the home feature a half-acre yard – on a hill – with 30 bushes that need regular pruning? Will you have time to maintain it all – and is the yard worth the effort?
  • Lot location. Are you concerned about being on a corner lot at one of the neighborhood's main intersections?
Remember, photos and videos can't always capture everything, so consider your top three priorities in a home. When you think you've found them in a property online, it might be worth taking a look in person – even if that shade of green in the kitchen isn't your first choice.

The best thing you can do is see what's really there. Contact a RE/MAX real estate agent​ who can help you find your picture-perfect place.

Monday, December 9, 2013

Holiday Season is a good time to buy or sell a home




As winter’s end approaches, the housing market wakes up. All key measures of housing activity–searches, prices, starts, sales, and inventories–typically hit their annual lows in December or January. Each year, would-be buyers come out of hibernation first: search behavior starts to pick up in January, reaching its peak in March and remaining strong through August. Sales and inventories peak later in the year.
But local housing markets have their own rhythms. To see when each state’s housing market heats up, we looked at six years of search history – January 2007 to December 2012 – for properties in every state. Of course, Beach Luxury Real Estate has grown dramatically over these years, so we used a seasonal adjustment model to strip out the upward trend and uncover the regular seasonal rhythms of search behavior across the country.
Nationally, the peak months of search activity are March and April. After a slight dip in May, there’s a second peak in the summer months of June and July. As the year ends, search activity drops off. December is the slowest month, followed by November. At the state level, though, the peak month for search activity ranges from as early as January to as late as August. This month, February, is the top month for search traffic in Florida. In these warm states, winter weather is good for home searches and going to open houses. Across much of the country, though, home search activity peaks in the springtime, including in the Midwest, the Plains, and much of the West and Northeast. The summertime – June through August – is the peak for most of the South and a few states in the Northwest and northern New England. No state enjoys peak season in September, October, November, or December.
Even though the two earliest states to peak each year–Florida and Hawaii–are warm, southerly states, and the last two states are northerly Montana and Oregon, home searches generally peak later in the South than in the Northeast, Midwest, and Plains.
So here are some reasons why the Holiday Season is a Good Time to BUY or SELL A Home:
Reason #1: Lower competition means lower prices
Most people think of spring and summer as the best time to buy a house. They want to get their children settled into new schools before the start of the new school year. The warmer time of year therefore creates a seller's market, where buyers have a disadvantage. You'll find competition for the best deals and high prices.
For many people, the holiday season is the time to catch up on gift sales, festivities, and spending moments with loved ones. When you buy a house at this time, you take advantage of the low prices this natural lull in the marketing cycle creates. Like the diligent squirrel in the story, you will be one of the special few spending their time looking at houses.
Reason #2: serious sellers
Less competition means that people are motivated to sell their house. In the holiday season, buyers are a precious commodity. In fact, only 8.1 percent of home sales occur in December. Sellers know that fewer feet will be treading on their carpet, so this small window of opportunity turns you into a serious buyer with a serious edge. If the house has been listed for many weeks, you'll have even more negotiation power, especially since sellers receive a tax deduction if they sell before the end of the year. If you are genuinely earnest about wanting to buy a house and have a reasonable offer, why should a homeowner have to reschedule his holiday plans to continue showing his house and worry about selling? Here you have the leverage in price negotiation.
Reason #3: Better interest rates on mortgages
The drop in demand to buy a home at holiday season means that lenders experience less requests for mortgage money at this time. This phenomenon manifests itself in favorable mortgage terms for you -- a great reason why it's the best time to buy a house. Interest rates drop every December through January on a cyclical basis.
A lender can offer you a low interest rate or even cancel some fees to secure your patronage. Do your homework and shop around (don't forget to include the many online options) in order to get the best rate.
Loan officers advise that it's best to get prequalified with a mortgage broker or lender early because loan closing turnaround times can range from 30 to 60 days.
Reason #4: Tax deduction
Buying a house and closing before the end of the year may give you a much-appreciated tax deduction. You have a good chance to be able to subtract the interest component of the initial mortgage payment from that year's taxable income. Speak to a qualified tax advisor to find out how mortgage interest deduction may be applicable to your circumstances.
Reason #5: Faster closings
Faster closings are historically more available in November and December, because of fewer overall transactions in the industry. Because lenders want to close their books at the end of the year, they may be inspired to close a transaction more quickly for people buying homes at this time.
Reason #6: Enjoy your summer vacation
Finally, do you really want to spend your summer vacation overwhelmed with the demands of buying a house? If you're moved in during the winter, you're freed up to enjoy summer activities. If you do some landscaping work in the winter, you'll even enjoy the warm weather more when the fruits of your labors become a pruned and blooming property in the spring.
If you put in some planning and effort to buy a home during the winter months, then you can relax and enjoy yourself more than those caught up in the spring and summer house-buying frenzy.

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Miami, FL is the # 1 City where home buyers are paying cash



All-cash home sales jumped in August, making up nearly half of residential real estate transactions, according to data just released by the real estate data firm RealtyTrac.
Last month, 45 percent of sales were all cash. The last time the nation cracked the 40 percent barrier for all-cash sales was more than a year ago. All-cash transactions are at the highest level they've been since March 2012, when they hit 52%. And in the following 11 big metro areas last month with populations of a million or more, most home sales were all-cash transactions,

11. New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 51%
… in July: 36%
… a year ago, in August 2012: 34%

10. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 52%
… in July: 49%
… a year ago, in August 2012: 36%

(tie) 8. Memphis, TN-MS-AR
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 53%
… in July: 40%
… a year ago, in August 2012: 44%
(tie) 8. Cincinnati-Middletown, OH-KY-IN
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 53%
… in July: 42%
… a year ago, in August 2012: 35%

7. Kansas City, MO-KS
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 54%
… in July: 34%
… a year ago, in August 2012: not available

6. Orlando-Kissimmee, FL
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 63%
… in July: 55%
… a year ago, in August 2012: 43%

5. Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 64%
… in July: 60%
… a year ago, in August 2012: 53%

4. Jacksonville, FL
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 65%
… in July: 61%
… a year ago, in August 2012: 47%

3. Las Vegas-Paradise, NV
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 66%
… in July: 68%
… a year ago, in August 2012: 52%

2. Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 68%
… in July: 59%
… a year ago, in August 2012: 59%

1. Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL
Percentage of sales that were all cash in August: 69%
… in July: 67%
… a year ago, in August 2012: 62%

Find more information in: www.beachluxuryrealestate.com / newsletter.

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Real Estate Buyer’s Market Over ?

 

You don’t usually find clearance sales on real estate. But the last two years are beginning to look like the deal of a lifetime for anybody who bought a home.
That dynamic may now be changing as home prices surge by double-digits, interest rates rise and the whole housing bust recedes into the past. The latest sign that the buyer’s market is ending is a convincing improvement in foreclosures. Sales of foreclosed homes now account for about 12% of home sales, according to research firm FNC. That’s down from 17% a year ago and 37% in 2009, the low point of the housing bust. At the current pace, foreclosures will fall back to typical pre-recession levels within a year or so, signaling something like a return to a normal housing market.
That’s an important economic indicator that also has a tangible effect on buyers and sellers in the real world. An epidemic of foreclosures has been one of the factors pushing prices down to depressed levels and keeping sellers on the sidelines. With prices as low as they’ve been, many people who bought within the last five or even 10 years couldn’t sell their homes without taking a loss. That stunted the whole economy by preventing people from moving to better areas where there might be more job opportunities and discouraging first-time home owners from moving up to bigger, nicer homes.
With fewer foreclosures, there’s less of a discount on distressed homes, and firmer prices overall. In 2009, foreclosed homes sold for about 25% less than their estimated value, according to FNC. Today, they sell for about 8% less than their estimated value. Since foreclosure discounts drag down prices on all homes, it’s no surprise that home prices fell sharply when there was a spike in foreclosures. Prices bottomed out in the first half of 2012 and are now rising by about 12 percent year over year, according to a variety of home-price indexes.
There’s some evidence now that trade-up buyers are finally, well, trading up. Sales of lower-priced entry-level homes that might typically appeal to first-time buyers are falling, possibly because new buyers are still struggling to get credit. But sales of higher-priced homes that would typically appeal to second- or third-time buyers are rising. “The recovery is partly driven by a rising presence of trade-up buyers who are in a position to take advantage of low home prices,” FNC’s recent report says.
This comes at the same time that 30-year mortgage rates have spiked from about 3.5% in April to more than 4.5% now. That obviously makes homes more expensive, but it might also spur more potential buyers into action, since waiting could expose them to even higher rates. The median sales price of a home, around $214,000, is now high enough for the typical seller to turn a small profit on the sale, which comes in handy for families that are turning around and buying another house. It might even offset higher costs that come with rising prices and higher rates.
That’s why the end of the buyer’s market isn’t the end of the housing recovery. If anything, it marks the return to a more rational market in which buyers and sellers both have some leverage. Among other things, rising prices ought to lure more sellers to put their homes up for sale, increasing the supply of homes and putting a check on rising prices. That seems not to have happened yet, but many economists expect it will soon.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve is closely watching the housing market as it considers whether to rein in in its easy-money policies, since housing is a huge part of the economy and can make or break a recovery. The Fed could have intervened over the last four months as long-term rates rose, and pushed them back down. But it was conspicuous in its choice not to, which suggest the Fed feels the housing recovery has enough momentum to withstand higher rates. A bit more of a seller’s market would make it official.
- See more at: http://activerain.com/blogsview/4196203/real-estate-buyer-s-market-over-#sthash.lEWa2Fmy.dpuf

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Foreclosure Florida

Here's a snapshot to the Foreclosure Process in Florida
 Homes in foreclosure: 237,187
 Pct. foreclosed homes vacant: 23%
 Foreclosure rate:1/383
Since the beginning of 2008, home prices in Florida have fallen by more than a quarter, more than every other state except Nevada. Homosassa Springs, Florida, has the highest rate of foreclosure vacancies in the country among large metro areas, with over 40% of foreclosed homes vacant. The state has more than 50,000 vacant foreclosed homes, over a third of the total for the country. Second-place Illinois has only 15,585 zombie homes. The state’s long foreclosure process has likely contributed to the number of homes remaining in foreclosure, as well as the percent of homeowners opting to give up on their foreclosed property. Florida takes 907 days on average for home to be foreclosed, the third longest process in the country.
- See more at: http://activerain.com/blogsview/4191410/foreclosure-florida#sthash.oWG7Dlby.dpuf