Market News
Existing-Home Sales Slow in June but Remain Above Year-Ago Levels
With the scheduled closing deadline for the home buyer tax credits, existing-home sales slowed in June but remained at relatively elevated levels, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Read more...
Real Estate Community on Fire over LeBron James' Housing Options
Even before LeBron James announced he'd be coming to South Florida, which South Florida luxury home he would choose was being discussed. Read more...
Obama Signs 3-month Extension of Homebuyer Credit
President Barack Obama on Friday signed a law giving consumers already in the process of buying a home three extra months to close the deal and still get a popular tax credit from the government.
Homebuyers with contracts signed by April 30 who failed to go to closing by the original June 30 deadline will now have until September 30 to complete their purchases. Read more...
May 2010 Existing Home Sales: Miami Condominium Sales Surge 70 Percent
In the Miami MSA, there was a 70 percent increase in condominium sales in May 2010 compared to the same month last year and a 131.4 percent increase compared to two years ago, according to the Realtor Association of Greater Miami and the Beaches and the Southeast Florida Multiple Listing Service (SFMLS). Read more...
A Fresh Look at Rent vs. Buy
"Why on Earth would you buy down here when you can rent?" asked a friend of mine in Miami Beach not long ago. "Buying is so over." Real estate website Trulia.com has looked at major real estate markets across the country and asked: Is it cheaper to buy, or to rent? Read more...
South Florida home sales -- and prices -- rise
Home sales and prices increased in April compared to the year before, a possible sign of stability in a long-shaky real estate market. Read more...
Mortgage Rates Decline - Home Buyers Get Surprise Boost From Europe Crisis as Loans Drop to Below 5%
The financial turmoil in Europe is providing an unexpected windfall for American home buyers, as international money seeking a safe haven is flowing into the U.S., pushing domestic mortgage rates to the lowest levels of the year and back near 50-year lows. Read more...
Condo financing in Florida to get boost from Fannie Mae
Only about 40 of the 253 condominiums at Regent Park in downtown Hollywood are occupied by people who own them. The rest are vacant or being rented by investors to tenants. They don't have a stake in the pet-friendly development, so keeping it clean and appealing isn't necessarily their top priority, said Mitch Anton, the board president. Read more...
Home-sale surge a sign of recovery
Driven by drop-dead prices on foreclosures and short sales and a looming deadline for federal tax credits, home and condo sales in South Florida shot up in March, brightening the outlook that this year may herald a real estate recovery. Read more...
Pending Home Sales Show Healthy Gain, Hint at Spring Surge
Pending home sales rose in February, potentially signaling a second surge of home sales in response to the home buyer tax credit, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Read more...
South Florida home, condo sales edge upward
Cut-rate foreclosures, rock-bottom interest rates and lucrative tax breaks helped South Florida home sales edge higher in February -- even as the nation extended its three-month sales slump. Read more...
Give that wreck a second look
In shopping for a home, sometimes a property that isn't pristine winds up as the favorite. Perhaps the patio screen droops. Or floor tiles are broken. The plumbing may be shoddy. Read more...
Surprise Turnaround in Homeowner Equity
With all the bad news about underwater homeowners and strategic walkaways, you might think that American homeowners' equity holdings are in the tank. Read more...
High-End Home Prices Gain in 12 U.S. Cities, Including Miami
Prices for the most expensive U.S. homes rose in 12 of 17 cities tracked by S&P/Case-Shiller indexes in November, indicating efforts to help first-time homebuyers are also leading to move-up purchases. Read more...
