Heather the Realtor - Orlando Area's Top Real Estate News

Orlando First Time Home Buyers your free $8000 Tax Credit is set to expire really soon. That's right in less then 48 days the first time tax credit will expire and you will have missed out on one of the greatest home buying perks ever!

Plus if you are a move up buyer you can qualify for the $6500 tax credit but again that expires in 48 days as well. If you are on the fence now is the time to get off it and behind it instead!

So how do you qualify for the $8000 or $6500 tax credit?

First Time Home Buyer is someone who hasnt owned a home in the past 3 years

You purchase a home with a value of $80,000 or more (otherwise your tax credit is 10% of the purchase price)

Be under contract on a home by April 30, 2010 and close by June 30, 2010

If you are a move up buyer:

You must have been in your current home for a minimum of the past 5 years

Purchase of homes priced above $800,000 are not eligible for the tax credit.

The income limit for a single taxpayer is $125,000; $225,000 for married joint filing taxpayers.

If you are in the market to purchase a home in the Orlando area dont sit on the fence. Prices couldnt be better, the interest rate is still at an all time low for a 30 year fixed rate mortgage and there is free money from Uncle Sam!

Contact my team and I if you are ready to purchase your first home or move-up property today! We can even help you qualify for down payment assistance programs up to $35,000.

This blog is part of a monthly series about the foreclosure market in the Orlando area. My goal is to keep area home owners and buyers educated on how the REO market is recovering or if it is and what deals are out there for both First Time Home Buyers and Investors. Click the link to see Orlando's February Foreclosure Numbers.

Area Number of Homes

Florida 58,865 Bank Owned Homes in the State of Florida

Orange Co 5,367 Bank Owned Homes in Orange County

Seminole Co 1011    Bank Owned Homes in Seminole County

These numbers are said to be accurate as of 3/7/10 12:13 pm

My predictions were right the foreclosure numbers are on the rise and up across the board from February and are just shy of being up nearly 50% from January in Seminole County alone as I had predicted and by the end of the month I think we will hit that number.

It's very important when considering to short sale your home that you have an experienced agent on your side. One that has certifications, like a CDPE and proof of prior deals that have successfully closed. Here's why, this weekend I received a call from a clients uncle who is handling his mortgage. The nephew was referred to me at the end of the year by a prior client. After speaking with this young gentleman and helping him some he decided to buy a short sale that he saw driving around. Well this uncle has now called me back 3 months into this deal and no real movement, I told him if he wanted me to help his nephew I would.

After speaking with the nephew today I learned not only is he paying too much for this house the house he has been waiting over 3 months for wasnt a true short sale scenario.

After digging around in public records I see the home owners have a mortgage of $147,000 the contract is for $165,000. They at some point and time took out a second mortgage. Now if the sellers had gone with an Agent that was experienced in short sales here in Orlando they would have had a much easier time closing on this property. The first mortgage is not being shorted, it's simply a regular sale with $18,000 left over. So the unskilled short sale agent decided that the first needed to go through the whole short sale process when it really didnt and wasted over 3 months.

It could have been simple. Go to the 2nd lein holder tell them the first is not being shorted you will receive $18,000 more then you ever would if we dont sell this and the value continues to drop or it goes to foreclosure because the sellers arent paying and within 30 days it should have been an easy short sale process and also would not have negatively impacted the sellers credit the way it is now.

When looking to sell your Orlando home as a short sale make sure to go with an experienced agent that is certified and has verifiable short sales under their belt. We recently had an Indymac short sale approved in under 21 days and another Suntrust short sale package approved in just 59 days. Our team works hard to get your home under contract and more importantly see it through to closing! 

Windermere Real Estate for Sale

What's going on in the Windermere Real Estate Market? Lets take a look at a snapshot of the sold market from January 2010.

Total Windermere Condos Sold: 2      Price Range: $104,000-$114,000

Windermere REO Condos Sold: 1

Windermere Short Sale Condos Sold: 1

No Resale Units sold

Total Windermere Town Homes Sold:6 Price Range:$98,100 - $195,090

Windermere REO Town Homes Sold: 1

Windermere Short Sale Condos Sold: 1

4 of the units sold were resale or new construction

Total Windermere Single Family Homes Sold: 21  Price Range: $130,000-$7,250,000

Windermere REO Single Family Homes Sold: 6

Windermere Short Sale Family Homes Sold: 7

 7 homes sold were resales

28% of sales in January were REO/ Bank Owned Properties

31% of sales in January were Short Sale Homes

41% of Homes for Sale in Windermere that sold were regular sales! Wow and who said you cant sell your Windermere Home in this market?

If you need help deciding if now is the time to sell your home or need help determining if you qualify for a short sale contact us today. We are certified distress property experts, CDPE and Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialists.

Orlando Real Estate for Sale

What's going on in the Orlando Real Estate Market? Lets take a look at a snapshot of the sold market from January 2010.

Total Orlando Condos Sold: 308      Price Range: $8,100-$1,050,000

Orlando REO Condos Sold: 213

Orlando Short Sale Condos Sold: 75

20 Orlando condo were regular resale

Total Orlando Town Homes Sold:49 Price Range:$19,900-$300,000

Orlando REO Town Homes Sold: 28

Orlando Short Sale Condos Sold: 15

6 of the units sold were resale or new construction

Total Orlando Single Family Homes Sold: 554  Price Range: $16,250 -$1,840,000

Orlando REO Single Family Homes Sold: 280

Orlando Short Sale Family Homes Sold: 127

57% of sales in January were REO/ Bank Owned Properties

24% of sales in January were Short Sale Homes

With more then Half of all sales in Orlando being REO/Bank Owned Homes shouldnt you have a REO Agent on your side?

We are a proud member of NRBA (National Reo Brokers Association) Less then 1% of all REO agents belong to this honored group. Let our experience and connections with the bank work for you when purchasing your first home, move-up or investment property.

Lake Mary Real Estate for Sale

What's going on in the Lake Mary Real Estate Market? Lets take a look at a snapshot of the sold market from January 2010.

Total Lake Mary Condos Sold: 17      Price Range: $24,100-$118,000

Lake Mary REO Condos Sold: 10

Lake Mary Short Sale Condos Sold: 6

Only 1 condo was a regular

Total Lake Mary Town Homes Sold:10 Price Range:$109,000 - $308,500

Lake Mary REO Town Homes Sold: 0

Lake Mary Short Sale Condos Sold: 1

9 of the units sold were resale or new construction

Total Lake Mary Single Family Homes Sold: 16  Price Range: $119,000- $465,000

Lake Mary REO Single Family Homes Sold: 6

Lake Mary Short Sale Family Homes Sold: 3

37% of sales in January were REO/ Bank Owned Properties

23% of sales in January were Short Sale Homes

50% of Homes for Sale in Lake Mary that sold were regular sales! Wow and who said you cant sell your Lake Mary Home in this market?

If you need help deciding if now is the time to sell your home or need help determining if you qualify for a short sale contact us today. We are certified distress property experts, CDPE.

This blog is part of a monthly series about the foreclosure market in the Orlando area. My goal is to keep area home owners and buyers educated on how the REO market is recovering or if it is and what deals are out there for both First Time Home Buyers and Investors. Click the link to see Orlando's January Foreclosure Numbers.

Area Number of Homes

Florida 57,838 Bank Owned Homes in the State of Florida

Orange Co 5,205 Bank Owned Homes in Orange County

Seminole Co 927    Bank Owned Homes in Seminole County

These numbers are said to be accurate as of 2/7/10 9:01 pm

My predictions were right the foreclosure numbers are on the rise and up across the board from January. My prediction is the end of the 1st quarter going into the 2nd quarter numbers will be up over 50% from now.

Thinking about purchasing your first home in Orlando? Then read this First Time Home Buyer Guide to find out if you are ready to purchase your first house.

How do I know if I am ready to buy a home?

If you answer yes to all these questions then you maybe ready to purchase your first home.

• Do I have a steady source of income and is it reliable?
• Do I have a good standing record of paying my bills?
• Do I have established credit?
• Do I have the money saved for a down payment or qualify for down payment assistance?

Orlando Bank Owned Homes for Sale coming soon to the market. As an REO listing agent I normally have my upcoming inventory a few weeks to months before it's ready to be placed on the market. This gives my customers the advantage to knowing what's coming. If you want to sign up for our list of bank owned properties for sale email us a Heather@HeatherTheRealtor.com and tell us you want to be added to our Foreclosure List.

Our upcoming REO properties are as follows:

10112 Silmarien Orlando FL - Great home close to 417/408 and UCF

1820 Little Gem Loop Sanford, FL - Great townhome 3/2 1600+ sq ft 2 car garage

1151 Glendale Ave Deltona, FL - Great home directly across from large park and playground

1825 15th Ave Orange City FL  - Only 5 years old 

124 Pennsylvania Ave Winter Garden, FL  - 2/1 with carport great investment property will be priced under $30,000

Also we'll have two luxury Bank Owned homes in Windermere's Keene's Pointe coming this Spring!

To get the leg up on your competition join our Foreclosure Mailing List

Florida is generally in the top 5 on any list that you look at for foreclosures and Orange County FL is no different. I was working on some information for a client the other day and was playing with a foreclosure mapping feature. While people are trying to say things are improving the market is getting better it's a little artificial. 

I thought I would share with you the upcoming foreclosures for Orange County FL and you can tell me if you think things are better? Our market wont be out of the woods til 2012-2013.