South Region

Bankers: Floridians can still get home loans

Oct 12th, 2008 | By Gregory Arzumanov | Category: Housing News, South Region

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) – Oct. 12, 2008 – Floridians can still get home loans despite the national credit crunch, banking officials assured Gov. Charlie Crist on Thursday.
After a meeting at the Governor’s Mansion, Crist encouraged people to see their banker whether they’re interested in buying a new home or having problems paying their mortgages.
“Go talk [...]



Buy a home in this troubled market and the property tax may shock you

Oct 10th, 2008 | By Gregory Arzumanov | Category: Housing News, South Region

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Oct. 10, 2008 – Real estate ads these days include listing after listing of bargain-basement prices. But those who buy a home in a foreclosure or a pre-foreclosure sale should know that future property bills may be no bargain.
Just because someone snags a home at a low price doesn’t mean the tax [...]



Foreclosures Pushing Home Prices Down

Oct 9th, 2008 | By RT Staff | Category: South Region

Phillip Walker put his Jensen Beach home in Florida on the market 13 months ago.
He finally got an offer this week, and he jumped at it. But he’s not jumping for joy… That’s because he’ll have to settle for $95,000 less than what he originally priced the house.
“About every other week a new [...]



Foreclosure Investors Also in Trouble

Oct 7th, 2008 | By RT Staff | Category: South Region

Home foreclosure rates in the Rio Grande Valley are the highest in the state of Texas. But as homeowners lose their properties, others benefit by buying and then reselling them. A local investor says although it is a foreclosure market, trying to sell the home he just renovated has become more difficult.
Ever since entering the [...]



Real Estate Auction in Downtown Atlanta Sells 27 Homes in Less Than Two Hours

Oct 3rd, 2008 | By RT Staff | Category: South Region

Residential real estate auctions have become the fastest growing sector of the auction industry. The massive over-supply of condos has turned metro regions throughout the U.S. into fertile ground for real estate auctions.
Builders and developers nationwide have found themselves in the same predicament as hundreds of thousands of home sellers around the country: the need [...]



Gov. Crist Commends $1 Billion in Federal Support for Housing Market and Confirmation of Florida’s “AAA” Bond Rating

Oct 2nd, 2008 | By RT Staff | Category: South Region

Governor Charlie Crist today praised more than $1 billion in federal support for Florida’s housing market, made possible by the federal Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 passed by Congress this summer. He also announced that Standard &Poor’s has affirmed a “AAA” rating with a stable outlook to Florida’s general obligation bonds.
“I commend Florida’s [...]



Florida has long been feeling housing pains

Oct 2nd, 2008 | By Gregory Arzumanov | Category: Housing News, South Region

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Oct. 2, 2008 – Long before the debate over a federal bailout of the nation’s financial institutions took center stage, sagging property values and soaring mortgage payments triggered in part by adjustable interest rates and increasing taxes threatened to force thousands of Floridians into foreclosure.
According to RealtyTrac, Florida’s 44,000 foreclosure filings in [...]



Florida to get $541 million in federal housing funds

Sep 29th, 2008 | By Gregory Arzumanov | Category: Housing News, South Region

WASHINGTON – Sept. 29, 2008 – The state of Florida will receive $541 million in new federal foreclosure funds to prevent further home loan defaults and combat the effects of blight caused by the growing tide of abandoned properties, U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Steve Preston announced Friday.
State and local governments must use the [...]



Several Florida metro areas continue upswing in existing home, condo sales in August

Sep 24th, 2008 | By Gregory Arzumanov | Category: Housing News, South Region

ORLANDO, Fla. – Sept. 24, 2008 – For the second month in a row, several of Florida’s metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) reported increased sales of both existing single-family homes and existing condos in August 2008, according to the latest housing statistics released by the Florida Association of Realtors (FAR).
“Despite economic uncertainty and the start of [...]



Can Washington stop home price declines?

Sep 22nd, 2008 | By Gregory Arzumanov | Category: Housing News, South Region

WASHINGTON (AP) – Sept. 22, 2008 – Home prices. That’s what the Bush administration’s historic Wall Street bailout is really about.
Falling home prices in the U.S. have acted like dominoes, knocking homeowners into foreclosure and taking down lender after lender, until the entire global financial system was in jeopardy.
Experts say that the government’s enormous plan [...]