Life In Bonita Springs

May You Be Enjoying It With Best Buds

If you’re from in town or even from out of town and looking for a place to watch the game hit up JohnnyMalloy’s Sports Bar or Big Al’s Sports Bar.

Heaven Scent Flowers on Old 41 Road

Heaven Scent has been in Bonita Springs for years. It’s the place to go to get a great arrangement, balloon bouquet, bridal arrangements, gifts and more.  Heaven Scent helped our family through three children’s home coming events and high school proms.  The flower artists can create anything you need.  If you give them a little bit of freedom of expression they can custom create a one of a kind corsage or arrangement for any special occasion.  They’ve spoiled us on more than one occasion. 

Just yesterday I stopped in for an “It’s a boy” balloon bouquet.  Someone in our neighborhood was bringing their new baby boy home so we decided to decorate their mailbox for them.  It was so much easier and faster to get in and out of the Heaven Scent shop than it was to make my way to a big box grocery store.

If you’re looking for a gift and floral shop for special occasions try Heaven Scent Flowers across the street from Riverside Park in Old Bonita Springs, Florida.

27515 Old 41 Road
Bonita Springs, FL 34135-5504
(239) 992-5683

Bonita Springs Naples Estero Ft Myers Real Estate

Just like the past few months, the largest sector of real estate that is selling is priced under $400,000.   The real estate priced under $200,000 is absolutely on fire.  This data was collected from the Sunshine MLS and includes all closed sale properties in the MLS from Fort Myers through Naples, Florida.

If you’re currently in the process of searching for a home or condo in the $200,000 and under price range expect properties to sell quickly, and to experience multiple offers on well priced real estate in great condition.  Yes, it’s were seeing multiple offers again.

While our prices are down our units of real estate sold is up and rivaling number from 2005 and 2006.  If you’re interested in just how much real estate sold last month read also:

Is SW Florida Real Estate Selling? | January 2010 Report

Information is deemed accurate, not guaranteed and subject to change.

Real Estate Unit Sales For SW Florida

As usual, I go back several years during the month of January to show you where we were, where we went and how Southwest Florida real estate is recovering.  This is only a few days into February so the numbers will likely be higher.  It’s good news that so much real estate is starting to change hands.

Yes, I know … Prices Are Down

I am usually a little surprised when someone says, “But real estate prices are down” after looking at the graph above.  Yes, there down.  We have excessive inventory (that would be the units) and we have to sell it off in order for real estate prices to go up.  Look, we’re selling off the units and it’s the beginning of the end of excess inventory.

There are no magic wands or easy fixes for what happened to the economy or the real estate market.  I’m still shocked by consumers that get impatient and want it all better in months, not the years it’s taking.  

Depending upon the price range of the real estate it could be months, if  you’d like to look at what price point of real estate is selling the most, read also:

What Price Range of Real Estate is Selling in Southwest Florida?

Country Club Communities 2.0

Country club communities that are in the green or in the process of recovering from the brink of near disaster are now trying to make their way through this difficult economy. They have a huge job on their hands.

It’s been a while since I’ve had a couple of complementary full page “Chris Griffith kicks puppies and breaks rainbows” ads so here’s the five hundred words of wisdom I have to bestow upon country club communities struggling to get their good news to consumers.

We’re in the information age. News travels at the speed of light and can be created and even spun by choice at the click of a mouse. Every business, including police departments have adapted to the technology of social networking and blogging. The real blogging that is … not harpooning in nasty comments on forums.

Get the public up to speed, get your residents up to speed by providing information in the most transparent fashion in which they’re able and to promote their business like any other business promotes; 2.0 on the web. You’ve not budgeted for it or hired professionals to do it, but you should probably start.

Instead of creating an uber secretive society of closed doors and secrets why not just expose how great your community is and how structurally sound it really is?

If you’ve not Googled your country club or your community’s name, you need to. For every blogger or newspaper that has published a story that isn’t positive why not invite the author for a fresh look at the community to write a new story?

Appoint a representative or a committee that monitors the sales of properties in your neighborhoods and create a .pdf file of what your community has to offer, maps, statistic, membership information or whatever else you want potential buyers to know and get it to the real estate agents to attach to the multiple listing of every single home in the community.

Your community websites should now be comprehensive and include just about anything an owner or potential buyer needs to know about your community. Why are your HOA and condo documents not on your websites? They’re a matter of public record, anyway. Why are the membership applications not up there, too? Meeting minutes?  Budget? *gasp*

If you’re a member of a board in a community or condo, do yourselves a favor and anonymously call your management company and try to get one emailed or faxed. You’d think it was a national secret just to try to make application in some of these communities.

A blogging platform added to your website is a minor change that can bring a world of enlightenment. Publish your own news; let the owners publish their own news or photos of the latest events by submitting it to your web marketing expert. Your marketing expert could simply just be an intern at a local high school or college or maybe just a web savvy resident.

It’s not rocket surgery. The internet age has made it necessary for just about everything to be transparent. To succeed in this trying economy club house communities need to get on the 2.0 band wagon and manage their reputations, run their businesses like a business or they’ll continue to shrivel on the vine.

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Real Life in Bonita Springs is a project by Chris Griffith dedicated to writing useful blog posts for consumers about the Bonita Springs, Florida area.  Find out what it is really like to live in Bonita Springs, Florida by reading about our fair city. You’ll get the latest in local real estate information, Bonita Springs real estate market reports and a little bit of humor.  If you have topic ideas, feel free to request a story about the idea, after all, this site is just for you.

You can subscribe to a weekly email newsletter by visiting www.LifeInBonitaSprings.com and entering your email in the subscription area on the left pane of the web page or by adding us to your reader by subscribing to this blog. Oh, and if you’re reading this content anywhere else but www.LifeInBonitaSprings.com or Naples Daily News it is probably stolen.

Free Movies at Riverside Park

Date:  Saturday, February 6, 2010
Time:  6:00pm - 9:00pm (Main Event Starts at 7:00pm)

Price:  FREE!!!

Place:  Riverside Park in Downtown Bonita Springs 

Main event, Grease, starts at 7:00pm.  Bring your lawn chairs and blankets and enjoy the show!!!  Vendors will be available on site.

Click Here to View Flyer

Pros and Cons of a Bi-Weekly Mortgage Program

When a borrower enters into a contract to make bi-weekly payments on their mortgage, the amortization schedule is accelerated. For example, with a 30-year amortization schedule, the borrower makes 12 payments per year. In a bi-weekly arrangement, the borrower makes 26 'half' payments, which allows the loan to be paid off in 22.8 years instead of 30 years. It's the same as making 13 monthly payments.

This ultimately saves the borrower thousands of dollars in interest rate fees. However, bear in mind that bi-weekly programs usually have some type of setup, transaction, and maintenance fees associated with them. A custodian manages the bi-weekly payments in a trust account (and also makes a profit on the interest accrued there). Because the lender really doesn't accept partial payments, this middle man is still making monthly payments to the lender on some type of pre-payment schedule.

It is important for the consumer to know that the same results can be achieved without hiring an outside company to do this. As long as your loan program carries no pre-payment penalty, pre-payments can be made on a monthly or annual basis to shorten the loan term to save money on interest or remove PMI charges on loans that have less than a 20% down payment. The borrower simply needs to indicate the extra payment is being made toward the principal balance, and have the discipline to make these extra payments as scheduled.

Mortgage Interest Rates for Fixed Rate Mortgages*

Rates as of Wednesday, 3rd February, 2010:

Keith Cloak, Senior Mortgage Banker

Keith Cloak
Branch Manager
AnnieMac Home Mortgage
Phone: (239) 676-3245
Fax: (866) 474-5037
LicenseNMLS 212030
KCloak@Annie-Mac.com
www.Annie-Mac.com

The Low Interest Rates Won’t Last Forever

To everyone’s great relief, fixed mortgage rates have been extraordinarily low for the last year averaging between 4.75% - 5.25%.  However, perhaps you remember the summer of 2008?  Gas prices crested $4/gal, inflation was all the rage and home buyers were snapping up 6.5% mortgage rates like they were deals on last year’s golf balls at the new PGA Tour Superstore in Naples.

Then, the dam leaked. Banking fell apart, the economy went to the brink, and the Federal Reserve stepped in to clean up the mess. The Fed made many moves to heal the economy, but one of its most important ones was backstopping the mortgage-backed securities market to the tune of $1,250,000,000,000 (that’s $1.25 TRILLION folks!).  Visualize that for a minute. It's a huge number! The Fed used this money to become a big-time buyer of mortgage bonds to the tune of buying ~80% of ALL bonds being sold!  The goal?  Lower long term (15 and 30 year) rates and that is exactly what happened. 

Starting April 1, 2010, though, life goes back to normal. L The Fed is ending its monetary support (minutes for this week’s FOMC meeting) and the market will adjust according to prevailing market forces.  So this news is the very large elephant sitting in the corner of the room that everyone is trying to ignore.  Fact is however, most economists (and even most of the Fed governors) believe that without the Fed keeping rates artificially low, we’ll be seeing higher rates in the very near future. 

This news is worth shouting out to all of your customers still waiting to make that offer!  On a $400,000 loan, a 1% change in rates equates to $250/month and that’s not chickenfeed!!!  Mortgage rates are going up.  The question is "how soon until markets react?" For now, rates are great. Economic data is soft and inflation is tame. Plus, the dollar is rallying.  These are all conducive to low mortgage rates.  However, at some point, Wall Street will start pricing bonds for the Fed's exit.

Rate shoppers should really have a plan in place.  Be patient, but not too patient. Locking mortgages is a game of timing and, for that, people need help.  That’s why your Summit Mortgage Loan Officers are all well versed on this marketplace and are monitoring this developing story as it unfolds.  Pick up the phone and call us, our numbers are below this email.  You’ll be glad you did!

As always, your Summit team is here to help you. 

William Dukes

Senior Mortgage Banker

With more than 25 years of financial advising experience including 10 years in mortgage lending Will Dukes understands clients’ borrowing needs and concerns. More importantly, being a "survivor" in the current mortgage lending atmosphere speaks volumes about Will's integrity and ability to navigate rapidly changing conditions. If you have questions about finance contact Will at Summit Home Mortgage, Inc. 239.272.2241.

If you do not see the video player above CLICK HERE

Foreclosure Real Estate

It’s just murder out there this time of the year. Homes priced under $200,000 are tearing it up in the market. The closer the price of the home gets to entry level pricing the faster new listings hit and leave the market. Buyers snap them up fast when they’re a great deal or in particularly good condition. There isn’t a moment to spare when they’re priced right or someone else will swoop the home up.

Contrary to whatever the news has told buyers back home, up north or where ever the buyers are from, real estate still is selling and banks are still lending money. When the typical out of state buyer comes to southwest Florida they’re often of the mindset that there’s tumble weeds rolling around here, they’re going to steal a property and do everybody a favor by buying real estate.

The “buy now, it won’t last” warning the professionals give them may make buyers worry that they’re getting the hard sell but it only takes missing out on a couple of offers before they get to serious and start striking like lightening.

The multiple offer situation is becoming more and more common especially since the inventory in the entry level market has started to shrink. In a normal market it would be easy to look at the days on market a property spends from listing though close to indicate how swiftly real estate is selling. In our current market you’d have to look at the days on market between listing date and pending sale date.

Those short sales seem to collect days on market, which are really unrelated to market conditions versus desire to purchase. While the short sale lender is busy losing files and taking its sweet time approving a short sale the days rack up.

As far as foreclosures are concerned, that’s where the big scramble is. Multiple offers are generally common place and there are usually a lot of unhappy campers when the dust settles.

There are credit worthy buyers yearning to purchase a foreclosure and they just can’t compete with the cash buyers or they get lost in rush off offers that come in on the bank owned homes.

If you’re on the outside looking in and shopping for entry level real estate, one of the best kept secrets to keep in mind is that there are two multiple listings sites; Sunshine MLS that primarily covers Collier County, Bonita Springs and Estero and Fort Myers MLS that covers Lee County and Bonita Springs.

If you’re searching for foreclosures and you’re on the real estate market like white on rice, here’s a tip: the banks that list their foreclosures with REO agents often don’t understand access to the local multiple listing services and will list a Naples or Bonita Springs home with an agent in Fort Myers that doesn’t have access to the multiple listing website most used in the area and vice versa.

It’s the slyest way to find a publicly listed foreclosure or preapproved short sale with the lease amount of competition in this area. Get set up on a hot list or Listingbook™ account outside of your general area, too.

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More Photos from “The Foreclosure” at The Foreclosure Notes.

Real Life in Bonita Springs is a project by Chris Griffith dedicated to writing useful blog posts for consumers about the Bonita Springs, Florida area.  Find out what it is really like to live in Bonita Springs, Florida by reading about our fair city. You’ll get the latest in local real estate information, Bonita Springs real estate market reports and a little bit of humor.  If you have topic ideas, feel free to request a story about the idea, after all, this site is just for you.

You can subscribe to a weekly email newsletter by visiting www.LifeInBonitaSprings.com and entering your email in the subscription area on the left pane of the web page or by adding us to your reader by subscribing to this blog. Oh, and if you’re reading this content anywhere else but www.LifeInBonitaSprings.com or Naples Daily News it is probably stolen.