Homeowners insurance rates

After months of trying to address homeowners insurance rates isses, goods news will soon satisfy Floridian. Rising insurance and property taxes were the 2 main issues affecting the local Floridian real estate market. Any modifications alleviating the burden of homeowners will benefit the Miami real estate market as a whole.


Private insurers will soon deliver rates reductions ranging from 10 to 50%. Private insurers will be able to buy lower cost back up insurance and therefore pass the savings to their clients. The windstorm portion of the insurance will be reduced drastically, from 27% to 73.5%. Areas closest to the waterfront might see substantial insurance savings, 50% for single family homes and 38% for condos.


These premiums rate cuts follow the Insurance Reform Bill passed by the Florida legislature this January. Insurance companies will incorporate these savings by March 15 th 2007, to be effective immediately or when renewed by the latest as of june 1 st 2007.

Published by MLR Realty contributor Eric Harari

Real estate news, Miami Florida real estate.

The latest statistics released by the Commerce department indicates that construction of new homes has slowed to the lowest rate in 10 years. The number of new house started in January dropped from 2.3 million last year to 1.4 million, a 38% decline.

This data covers the whole territory but of course regions fared slightly differently. According to analysts there are fundamental reasons for the drop that are not only related to harsh weather.

• The following are some of the statistics:

• The Northeast market has a 9% increase.

• The West Coast market has declined by 29%.

• The Middle West dropped by 15%.

• The South’s market is down 10%.

• Counties within those regions also fared differently as well.

Compared to last year, new building permits have also dropped dramatically. This week’s data follows 2 months of improvement and we see an increase of new home construction for November and December 2006. 15 % of all homes sold in the United States are new homes; however this data does not apply to the whole real estate market. Other real estate analysts have pointed to a significant sign of improvement in the market for previously owned homes thus confirming that the market is stabilizing.

This data, by definition is general and does not affect the different real estate markets the same way. In Miami the last few months have shown a definitive signed of improvement. Miami homes fared better than Miami condos; all condos in prime locations fared better than in class 2 locations. South Beach’s condo market proved to be flexible where as other Miami condo market’s such as Brickell and Aventura where definitely among the weakest of areas.

Published by MLR Realty contributor Eric Harari

Florida legislators propose property tax cuts, Miami real estate

The rapid rise in property taxes is one of the "twin threats" facing the real estate market in the state of Florida. The other is property insurance, with rates climbing equally as fast if not quicker.

After a seemingly successful attempt to tackle the property insurance issue, legislators are now addressing the importance of dealing with the property taxes issues. Those property taxes reduction proposals will undoubtedly have a positive impact on a softer real estate market.

The newly elected Florida Governor Charlie Crist proposed to introduce a constitutional amendment Tuesday that would cut property taxes by almost $ 5 Billion dollars, therefore addressing a major issue voiced by Floridian tax payers. The proposed cut would bring the following changes:

• Homeowners would be allowed to "take" their property tax savings with them when they move to another home in Florida.

• Double homestead exemption allowing local governments to increase the current homestead exemption from $25,000 to $50,000.

• A cap the assessed value of non-homestead properties that would limit the tax growth rate to 3% or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower.

As a result, homeowner’s in the first year alone are expected to save over $200 million in property taxes. Tax savings are expected to be almost $1 billion by the fifth year. And businesses and renters, in the first yea, will save over $600 million in property taxes. By the fifth year, savings are expected to exceed $2.5 billion.

If passed these new tax and insurance reduction proposals are going to provide a great ease on Floridian’s which in turn will be a great stimulant for the local real estate market.

- Published by MLR Realty contributor Eric Harari

New Home Sales Rise – Positive News For Florida Real Estate Market

Sales of new homes posted the biggest increase in five months in August, raising hopes that the recent slide in the housing industry may be leveling off. Sales of new single-family homes increased by 4.1 percent last month, far better than the 3 percent decline economists had been expecting and could signal that housing is beginning to level off after the slide. However, the price of homes sold in August fell to $237,000, down 1.3 percent from August 2005. From 2001 through 2005, housing enjoyed five consecutive years of record sales, propelled by the lowest mortgage rates in more than four decades. However, this year sales have been falling as mortgage rates rose and the economy slowed. The drop in sales and construction of new homes has been so sharp that some economists have worried that it could plunge the country into a recession. But other analysts argue that recent declines in mortgage rates should help put a floor on the housing decline. This statistics make positive news for the real estate market in general and for the Miami and Florida real estate market as well.

- Contributed by Paolo Scattarreggia of MLR Realty

In Housing as in Most Things: What's Up the Most, Falls the Most (New York Times, August 2006)

Off The Charts - Floyd Norris
The New York Times, August 26, 2006

“If you raise prices enough, people will stop buying. That may not impress economists as a new thought, but it accurately describes the current United States home market, where home buyers are suddenly more reluctant to put down their money, and the supply of homes for sale has reached record levels.

“The housing boom that now appears to have ended was most pronounced in a handful of areas largely concentrated on the East and West Coasts, while people in the Midwest wondered what all the excitement was about. Now it is the areas that did the best that are seeing the most buyer resistance. In three states, the rate of home sales in the second quarter of this year fell by more than a quarter from a year earlier. All are in warm-weather areas, all were viewed as likely to gain population as baby boomers retired and all enjoyed rapid price rises in the first half of the current decade, in part because of speculation by investors seeking quick profits. They are California, Florida and Arizona.

“While those states had the largest decline in sales rates, the six other states along with the District of Columbia that led the country in sales price increases early in the decade are now also experiencing sales declines more rapid than those in the nation as a whole. They include Hawaii and Nevada, two other areas that had intrigued investors, as well as the region that benefited from the growth of the federal government in this decade: Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia.

“At the other end of the list are 10 states with the smallest home price gains from 2000 to 2005. In six of them the pace of sales has risen this year, notwithstanding the national trend, and another three have had declines that are smaller than the national average.

The best of those 10 is Texas, where the pace of sales in the second quarter of 2006 was up 11 percent from a year earlier, and at a record high. Texas has benefited from a trend that may have hurt home sales in most areas: rising oil prices.

The state where higher oil prices are perhaps the worst news is Michigan, home of an automobile industry that bet on the continued growth of sales of sport utility vehicles. Home prices did not rise much there early in the decade, but now the pace of sales is falling at a double-digit rate, worse than in the rest of the country.

"Put another way, the pace of home sales in Michigan is almost exactly where it was in late 1997, while the national sales rate is still 46 percent above the figure then. In Texas, the gain over that period is 83 percent. Over that same period, the price of a barrel of crude oil has soared to $72 from $18.

"During the first part of this decade, it was the so-called blue states, the ones that elect Democrats, that were more likely to see big home price increases. If those that rose the most then are now to suffer the most, it will be the blue states that do the worst of the housing downturn.

"Among the states where home prices rose more than the national average from 2000 to 2005, John Kerry won 155 electoral votes in 2004, compared with just 55 for President Bush. But among states where home prices rose less than the national average, Mr. Bush gained 231 electoral votes to just 97 for Mr. Kerry"

-- Contriubted by Eric Harari of MLR Realty

Top-Ranked South Florida Schools

TOP RANKED PUBLIC SCHOOLS:

Coral Gables

Coral Gables Elementary School

105 Minorca Avenue, Miami, FL 33134

(305) 448-1731

GW Carver Middle School

4901 Lincoln Drive, Coral Gables, FL 33133

(305) 443-7388

Coral Gables High School

450 Bird Road, Miami, FL 33146

(305) 443-4871

South Beach

South Pointe Elementary

1050 4^th Street, Miami Beach, FL 33139

(305) 531-5437

Nautilus Middle School

4301 N Michigan Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33141

(305) 532-3481

Miami Beach Senior High School

2231 Prairie Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33139

(305) 532-4515

North Miami Beach

Fulford Elementary School

16140 Ne 18th Ave, North Miami Beach, FL 33162

(305) 949-3425

John F. Kennedy Middle School

1075 Ne 167th St, North Miami Beach, FL 33162

(305) 947-1451

North Miami Beach Senior High School

1247 Ne 167th St, Miami, FL 33162

(305) 949-8381

North Bay Village

Treasure Island Elementary

7540 East Treasure Drive, Miami Beach, FL 33141

(305) 865-3141

Nautilus Middle School

4301 N Michigan Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33141

(305) 532-3481

Treasure Island Head Start

7540 E Treasure Dr, North Bay Village, FL 33141

(305) 868-3698

Surfside/Bal Harbour/Bay Harbor

Ruth K. Broad-Bay Elementary School

1155 93rd St, Bay Harbor Islands, FL 33154

(305) 865-7912

North Miami Middle School

13105 NE 7th Ave, North Miami, FL 33161

(305) 891-5611

North Miami Senior High School

800 NE 137th St, North Miami, FL 33161

(305) 891-6590

Sunny Isles Beach

Ojus Elementary School

18600 W Dixie Hwy, Miami, FL 33180

(305) 931-4881

Highland Oaks Middle School

2375 NE 203rd St, Miami, FL 33180

(305) 932-3810

North Miami Beach Senior High School

800 Ne 137th St, North Miami, FL 33161

(305) 891-6590

Golden Beach/Hallandale/Aventura

Hallandale Elementary School

120 SW 4th Ave, Hallandale Beach, FL 33009

(754) 323-5950

Highland Oaks Middle School

2375 NE 203rd St, Miami, FL 33180

(305) 932-3810

Hallandale High School

720 NW 9th Ave, Hallandale Beach, FL 33009

(754) 323-0900

Biscayne Park

Montessori School of North Miami Elementary School

695 NE 123rd St, North Miami, FL 33161

(305) 893-5283

North Miami Middle School

13105 NE 7th Ave, North Miami, FL 33161

(305) 891-5611

North Miami Senior High School

800 NE 137th St, North Miami, FL 33161

(305) 891-6590

-- Contributed by MLR Realty

The Growing Market

The real estate market has seen incredible growth almost all over the world. It has reached unparalleled levels in all top-developed countries as well as developing countries. Examples of markets that have reached their all-time highs: England, France, Russia, and China.

The US market has also reached top levels in almost all major cities. The real estate market has shown some sign of weakness for the past 9 months, weakness touching the market in different ways according to local market conditions. The South Florida market was of course impacted by a wave of unprecedented speculation, but is a strong and resilient market with a very healthy economy, one of the lowest unemployment rates in the US, a strong migration from northen states as well as from Latin America and Europe. The very strong Euro makes the South Floridian market very attractive for European investors. The new popular investment themes in the North American market include the following areas :

• North of Florida
• Panama
• Costa Rica
• Dominican Republic
• Bahamas.
  

We identified also the following US cities or states where real investments are still a bargain:

• Atlanta, Georgia - (Below average appreciation rates, but very strong economy.)
• The Carolina's - (South and North)
• Austin, Dallas and Houston Texas
• Boise, Idaho.
• Phoenix, Arizona.
• Milwaukee, Wisconsin
  

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About the Author: Mark Nash's fourth real estate book "1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home" (2005) and a real estate broker in Chicago are the foundation for his consumer-centric real estate perspective which has been featured on CBS The Early Show, Bloomberg TV, Fidelity Investor's Weekly, Dow Jones Market Watch, MSNBC.com, The New York Times, Universal Press Syndicate and USA Today. www.MarkNashRealtor.com


-- Contributed by Agent Eric Harari of MLR Realty

Governor Bush and Commissioner Winn Announce 2006 School District Grades

More than one third of Florida school districts earn an "A"

Governor Bush and Commissioner Winn recently announced that a record number of Florida schools earned "A" and "B" grades in 2006. Since 1999, the number of schools earning an "A" or "B" jumped from 515 to 2,074 schools in 2006 — four times the number of high-performing schools seven years ago and 231 more than last year (up from 1,843). Three of every four Florida schools were considered high performing in 2006. Additionally, the number of failing schools is on the decline, down to a fourth of the number of failing schools in 1999.

Providing a quality education for each and every student in Florida is Governor Bush's priority and the state's most important mission. Florida continues to raise its standards for achievement to ensure students are prepared for the rigor of postsecondary education and the workforce. The A+ Plan for Education established the school grading system in 1999. Since then, standards have been raised three times and students continue to show improvement. Today, more of Florida's students than ever are reading on their own, taking college entrance exams, graduating from high school and earning college degrees.

- Posted by Valentina Mandarin of MLR Realty

Condominium inventory increase for July 2006 compared to June 2006

	Areas: 12,22,32,42
	$ Million	For Sale june 2006	%	For Sale july 2006	%
	1000000-14999000	9	0.0009	8	0.0008
	8000000-9999000	13	0.0013	13	0.0012
	6000000-7999000	18	0.0018	18	0.0017
	4000000-5999999	54	0.0054	56	0.0053
	2000000-3999000	339	0.0338	341	0.0324
	1500000-1999999	304	0.0304	306	0.0291
	1000000-1499000	579	0.0578	598	0.0568
	800000-999000	580	0.0579	599	0.0569
	500000-799000	2087	0.2084	2143	0.2036
	300000-500000	3225	0.3220	3287	0.3124
	300000	2807	0.2803	3154	0.2997
	Total	10015		10523
	Total condos Inventory	As of June 2006	As of July 2006	% increase
		10015	10523	5%

Our analysis of condomiums offered for sale in Miami, Miami Beach Aventura and Sunny Isles indicates that the trend that started since the begining of 2006 keeps going the same direction.

New listing of condominium are being added to already an inflated inventory and shows a 5% increase.

We note that categories of condominium identified by price ranges stay in the same percentage range in July compared to June 2006, the 5% increase apply to all categories pretty much with the same weight.

The number in itself does not seem high but when put in perspective if we keep the same trend this would be mean a yearly inventory increase of 70% for the coming 12 months.

-- Contributor: Eric Harari for MLR Realty, news posted August 10 th 2006:

Love At First Site - Billy Joel's New Island Mansion

When rock legend Billy Joel and his wife, Katie Lee set their sights on this La Gorce Island estate, it became their mission to own it – and now they do.

Nevermind that at the time that the celebrity couple fell in love with the island manse, the original builder still inhabited it – Joel and his wife had their hearts set on the Biscayne Bay villa - so they met the owner’s asking price of $13.5 million.

The beautiful stone structure features 7 bedrooms and 8 bathrooms and sits majestically on a 303,310-square-foot lot. No doubt a large part of the home’s appeal for Joel was the use of beautiful natural materials. A variety of different stone is used throughout the villa. The palm-lined driveway for example, paved with gold travertine, as well as the columns outside, are composed of solid marble.

One of the home’s bathrooms is outfitted in onyx; another is composed of European limestone. The living room features a hand-carved stone fireplace and mantel. The home’s window sills and moldings are all imported travertine, and there are semiprecious stones sprinkled throughout the house, making the house a real gem here in South Florida.

-- Taken from "Stone in Love" by Allison Edwards Summarized by Valentina Mandarin of MLR Realty

“Is Miami experiencing a downturn in the real estate market, or, as experts suggest, is it just “correcting” itself?

Spoiled by a strong sellers’ market, Miami-Dade real estate, in a twist-and-turn situation for the past nine months, has returned to a more balanced state of business. Prices are not falling. Property is selling all over the beach - and in the city and county. While inventory has increased and land dealings have made it more of a buyers’ market, sales have not been stunted. Overall selling conditions have returned to normal, which is a good thing for Miami-Dade, one of the most fascinating and growth-oriented markets in the world. “Sales come a bit slower because we went through a panic situation when properties were not sold in less than a week like they had in recent months,” says Ruth Carrington, a Realtor with Buy the Beach Realty in Miami Beach. “Buyers had been hesitant because they thought they saw the sky falling. But prices are stable, and we are closing property in a brisk manner.” Carrington has seen recent improvement in both the sales pattern and in the attitudes of buyers, who seem to have moved beyond the frozen-in-their tracks period. In fact, she had two closings in one recent week: a $400,000 condo on the beach, and another, higher end, waterfront unit that went for $1 million. “Things have stabilized, and people are remembering that real estate is a long term investment,” says Carrington. “They knew the fast 28-29 percent return on investments that lasted for a couple of years was not going to last. And buyers are happy to be returning to a normal marketplace.”

“It’s pretty simple,” observes Leonard Sondick, an agent with Century 21 in North Miami Beach. “Offer a good-looking product at a reasonable price, and it will not stay on the market very long. Things are picking up and should be great in the next 12 months.” When local buyers or sellers look at real estate around the U.S., they will see how strong it remains as a solid investment, and then realize Miami is a place they want to live, or at least revisit for the rest of their lives. Research has proven that there are no real estate bubbles bursting here or most anywhere else, only balloons that expand and contract because of the region’s healthy economy. More people moved to Florida last year than to any other state. In addition, luxury hotel projects on the beach are booming, with Miami Beach room occupancy rates up to 80-85percent as compared to about 60 percent in other resort areas of the country. Tourists come for fun, they want to stay, or at least buy a second or third home. They don’t really worry about prices or local real estate frustrations because they’re too mesmerized by the climate, the beach, the nightlife and the overall ambiance of this international city situated on prime American soil. With about 2,000 people a month moving to Miami, 50,000 units should be easily absorbed in two years. But not all 2,000 people who move here are rich, so they have to look long and hard for places they can afford. This will not cause any kind of real estate crash. “If there is a city more protected from a crash, it’s this one!”

-- Summary of “Market Madness” by Elena Cornide of MLR Realty

Analyzing Price Trends of Property Sold in 2006

Condo Research - A study that follows the following areas: 12,22, 32 ,42 which covers Golden Beach, Sunny Isles, South Beach all the way to North Miami Beach. 8,365 condos were sold, were tracked only transactions that were conducted through realtors.

We segmented the market in 3 different sub markets:

- The low-mid market: up to $799,000

- The luxury market: $800,000-2,000,000

- The super premium market: $2,000,000-10,000,000

Our analysis indicates that:

- 75.4% of units sold were units valued up to $499,000

- 89.9% = $799,000

The largest single segments are units sold up to $300,000, which amounts to 44.2%.

509 condos were sold from $1,000,000 to $2,000,000.

125 condos were sold for more than $2,000,000.

Analysis of condos for sale in June 2006

- There are 10,015 existing condos for sale.

- 60% of units valued up to $499,000

- 80% $ 799,000

- 883 condos valued between $1,000,000 to $2,000,000.

- 433 condos valued for more than $2,000,000.

There is a substantial increase in inventory compared to 2005, with a significant amount of daily additions. We observe also an increase in prices for the units on the market.

Analysis of condos sold in 2006 and projections for 2006

As of June 2006, 2,823 units were sold for the first 6 months, extrapolating on the year, 5,646 will be sold, which constitutes a decline of close to 32% (assuming same trend holds till the end of the year). By projecting sales in every categories we anticipate:

- 90% of existing inventories condos of less than $300,000 to be sold

- 50% existing inventories condos between $300,000- 500,000 to be sold

all existing categories will be left will around 70% of inventory unsold.

Analyzing price trends of property sold in 2006 and its extrapolations for 2006 we expect all segment categories to keep approximately the same percentages as 2005.

-- Published by MLR Realty contributor Eric Harari

Single Family Homes in Dade County Market Comparison 4/05-4/06 (May 2006)

For the past 12 months, inventory for the number of houses on the market almost tripled from 2841 to 8159. Number of houses sold dropped from 1125 in 2005 to 841 in 2006.

Prices per square feet increased from $ 223 to $ 260 a square foot. The price per square feet peak was reached in November 2006 with $ 265.

The actual average price of property sold increased from 479 000$ to 532 000 $ , while the average price of property for sale declined from 1 022 000 to 880 000. This data indicates that inflated asking prices were scaled down to match the house market's real value.

Conclusion

To summarize, the single family market is still strong, evidenced by a price per square feet that is still at the top of its history. The value of the average house still increased to $ 532 000 much higher than in April 2005 but is a bit shy of the all time high of $564 000 in November 2005. The market is still strong, despite 2 weakening factors, small price erosion and huge offer increase.

-- Published by MLR Realty contributor Eric Harari

For Sale by Owners - May (2006)

The days when selling a home was quick and easy are over. Owners should now use the services of a professional realty firm to sell their property. The latest statistics show that 80 % of home hunters, locate their dream properties through the internet. This indicates that internet advertising became the major media to sell properties. Putting a sign or an ad in the newspaper is not sufficient to perform a transaction. A significant and powerful internet strategy is required. Furthermore a cooling real estate market makes it strongly suggested to use a professional real estate company. Professional realtors will take advantage of their position to market properties in innovative ways, deploying all their creativity to close your deal.



- Published by MLR Realty contributor Eric Harari