The much anticipated auction at the The Vue at Lake Eola condominium tower finally took place this morning, ending with final bid of nearly $26 million.  The buyer of the remaining units at the downtown Orlando tower is reported to be Condo Developer LLC, a Delaware-based corporation that appears to have been created specifically for this purchase.

Of the 375 units originally for sale, approximately 165 unsold units remain, along with nearly 8,000 fee of retail space. This averages out at about $157K per condo, not a bad price considering the original asking prices. They will, of course, be resold for a profit however it remains to be seen what the new retail prices will be. The sale still has to be approved and the sale is unlikely to be considered ‘closed’ until the end of April.

As I sift through the various economic reports America has to offer on a monthly basis, I am filled with a unique, awkward kind of happiness.  Looking at the numbers and smiling is kind of like being happy that your friend isn’t on fire anymore.  You think “great, my buddy’s not burning anymore” right before you realize “man, my buddy’s pretty badly burnt regardless.”  A morbid sense of compa­rable relief.  Case and point, our country lost 36,000 jobs in February, which the markets referred to as a “positive” jobs report.  I guess “less negative” is all we can find to celebrate over these days.  Any excuse to crack a sixer of Pabst Blue Ribbon- I get it. Continue Reading »

Condo Inventory Still Dropping in Orlando

While naysayers insist that further house price declines may still be on the horizon, investors in Orlando are voting with their pocket books in droves.

There are currently 15,911 homes available for purchase through the MLS. The January 2010 inventory level is nearly 30% percent lower than it was in January of 2009 (n=22,613). The current pace of sales translates into 9.13 months of supply; January 2009 recorded 21.54 months of supply.

There are 11,756 single-family homes currently listed in the MLS, a number that is 4,647 (28.33 percent) less than in January of last year. Condos currently make up 2,802 offerings in the MLS, while duplexes/town homes/villas make up the remaining 1,353.

Condos, Town Homes and Villas

The sales of condos in the Orlando area increased by 168.03 percent in January when compared to January of last year. A total of 394 Orlando condos changed hands in January of this year compared to 147 in January 2009.

The most (217) condos in a single price category that changed hands in January were yet again in the distressed / bank owned / foreclosure / short sale $1 – $50,000 price range, which accounted for 55.08 percent of all condo sales. Thirteen condos sold for more than $250,000 in January. Many of these were downtown Orlando condos whos median prices are still higher than those of the cheaper condo conversions in the “suburbs”.

Visit our foreclosure page for more info on Orlando’s foreclosed condos or call 407-290-3408 for more info.

Here are the latest 55 West apartment / condo offerings downtown Orlando:

• Gramercy x 2 starting at $1295 - May. x 2 Gramercy’s starting at $1465.
• Soho - $1144 – March
• Village- $1486 – May

55 West City Residences:

• Small 1 bedroom! (825 sq ft)
• $1393 1 Large bedroom for $1467 pool view-12th floor… 1060 sq ft!

 2/2’s: (1300/1329/1402 sq ft)- starting at $1668

3/2’s: starting at $2215 @ 1808 sq ft, 3 bathroom, an OFFICE AND 2 parking spots!

3/3 1808 SQ FT as low as $2,215.

• Delaney’s 1288 and 1341 sq ft facing North and South- Huge common area and Perfect for roommates
• Flagler 1402 sq ft facing NW and NE starting at $1769
• Flagler 1329 sq ft facing South corner units as low as $1700.  There is a Delaney and  small Flagler on the 22nd floor.

Only 2 Lofts available in the 55 West condominium!  

Incentives:

At the time of writing:

1. 2.5 months free off 2 bedrooms and 3 Months free on 3 Bedrooms!
2. Look and Lease – get a $300 AMEX gift card (but you must lease that day).
3. Lesser cash rebate for those who rent subsequent to their first visit.

55 West units have floor to Ceiling Windows, stainless steel appliances, granite counter tops in select units, Washer/Dryer AWESOME Pool and Grill Area.

Call Condo Metropolis at 407-290-3408 for more info and a tour of 55 West apartments (find out how to get that cash rebate when renting at 55 West), and visit our main condo site for more info on the orlando condo scene. See our brand new downtown site for specific info on Orlando’s downtown condos / apartments.

Question: Our state statute states: “Unless otherwise provided in the governing documents, the homeowners association board of directors shall adopt and amend budgets for reserves in an amount adequate to repair and replace major capital items in the normal course of operations without the necessity of special assessments, provided that the amount set aside annually for reserves shall not be less than 10% of the budget for that year.” What does “adequate” mean?

Answer: If a special assessment is required to pay for reserve repairs or replacements, the board has not been reserving adequately and can be held responsible for the shortfall unless the members refused to approve (if their approval was required) annual budgets adequate to fund reserves. In other words, the board cannot be held accountable for something under the control of the members.

We’ve just launched our new website for Downtown Orlando condominiums!

Above is our new video for the site which can be found at: http://www.OrlandoCondosDowntown.com. We hope you like it. Turn up the sound and watch it in hi res!

You’ll find all of Orlando’s downtown condos, lofts and penthouses there from new construction like the Sanctuary and Star Tower, to downtown condo conversions like Uptown Place. You’ll also find a great new map that will let you see them all in relation to each other. There’s more work to do on the site yet so check back often. We may also add a downtown Orlando “condo rentals” section in the coming months. As always, your feedback and support is appreciated!

Condo Juice is a new blog that is designed to help condo owners that live in small, self-managed, buildings. The sites owners say: “We know that you face unique challenges running and managing your homeowner association and there is not really much good advice out there. Condo Juice is here to keep you up to date on best-practices you should be following and to give you tips on how to make condo self-management not seem like a big hassle.”

Condo Juice has tips and advice for people looking to buy or move into a new condo. They also offer advice on what to look for and look out for when buying a condo. This information is provided by the real estate experts from CondoJuice.com. It’s main focus is helping condo owners that live in small, self-managed, buildings but most of what’s on there is also relevant to larger associations that are professionally managed.

Congrats on the launch guys and keep up the great work!

55 West Condos at the Esplanade Downtown Orlando

are continuing their aggressive drive to rent up their condos as quickly as possible.

• Delaney’s (2’s 1300 sq ft) starting at $1827
• South Flagler (1329 sq ft)  starting at $1827
• North Flagler(1402 sq ft) starting at $1853
• Anderson starting at $2326

Current Specials:

• Lucerne – 687 sqft – $1168 NOW
• Village- 899 sq ft/11th fl- $1486 – may move soon
• Tribeca-1032 sqft/4th fl/latitudes-$1433 NOW
• Concord-1060 sqft/12th fl/-$1467 April Move

For more info and a tour of 55 West condos call: 407-290-3408. Visit our Fifty-Five West condos page to find out how you can earn $200 when you move in!

For info on other downtown deals head over to our new Downtown Orlando Condo sales site.

Amendments to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure Largely Derived From Recommendations of the Task Force on Residential Mortgage Foreclosure Cases.

Some of the changes are as follows:

Verification of Mortgage Foreclosure Complaints:  This requires the Plaintiff (lender) to attest to the truthfulness of the allegations in the complaint.  It is intended to minimize erroneous filings, conserve judicial resources by reducing the number of cases with ”lost note” issues and provide the court with greater authority to sanction lenders that make false allegations. Continue Reading »

So many folk have asked me why the banks would ’short’ sell so much property and cement their losses when they could do a simple loan modification do much better. And why do they make you miss a few mortgage payments before they’ll even begin speaking with you. None of it makes financial sense, right?

Well, like everything else in the world of finance, nothing is ever quite what it seems. You won’t believe the sweetheart deal that the Indymac boys were given by the FDIC… Watch this video and scream.

In other scandalous  real estate revelations, the mortgage Banker’s Association in DC short sold their own building for a little more than half of what they owed. Embarrassing? You could say that.

(Thanks to Jerry McGratty and Susan Sigrist for sending these news tips!)

Florida legislators understand how difficult association operations have been as a result of the high foreclosure rate, huge owner delinquencies, loss of revenue from the statutory cap on lender liability for payment and the length of time it takes to navigate through the legal system.  As a result, there is no shortage of legislation filed for consideration during the 2010 legislative session.  Here is short synopsis of some of the bills with links to the actual text:

House Bill 115: This proposal states that during the pendency of a foreclosure action, if the unit is occupied by a tenant, the association may demand that the tenants pay rent directly to the association, with a right of eviction for non-compliance. This Bill would also permit the condominium association to suspend certain common element use rights for nonpayment, although utility services could not be suspended. Voting rights could also be suspended for delinquencies. Similar amendments are proposed in this Bill for Chapter 720, the Florida Homeowners Association Act. Continue Reading »

Ignore the stats that were announced on the news today. National averaged statistics aren’t very relevant after all, unless you’re planning on buying up the entire country. Real estate is strictly a local business. So if you’re planning on buying in Orlando, then it’s Orlando data that really matters. And if it’s an Orlando condo you’re after, then Orlando condo data is all that really matters. So here goes…

There’s no doubt that most investors now believe that the bottom of the condo market has arrived with Orlando condo sales in 2009 more than triple the sales closed in 2008 (data from the Orlando Regional Realtor Association and the Florida Association of Realtors).

Realtors were responsible for the sale of 5,558 condo units in the Orlando metropolitan statistical area, compared with just 1,667 units sold in all of 2008. Increased sales are largely attributed to the reduced purchase prices with an average condo price of just $52,900 in 2009. Most of these were Orlando short sales or bank owned foreclosures (REO’s)

Again, contrary to the national picture, most of Florida’s large towns reported sales up for all of 2009 – at this point for 18 months straight in fact.

Condo resales in the entire state of Florida were also up nearly 47%, from 38,095 in 2008 to 55,985 in 2009. The median price of an existing condo fell to $108,000, 34% down from 2008’s $164,200.

For more information on buying or selling an Orlando condo, contact Condo Metropolis on: 407-290-3408. For downtown Orlando see our Downtown Orlando Condo site.

Readers have submitted quite a few questions in the last few weeks regarding insurance for condominium property and responsibility for repair of damages.  Section 718.111(11), Florida Statutes, requires every condominium association to maintain insurance coverage for:

• All portions of the condominium property as originally constructed (including replacements of like kind); and
• All alterations or additions to the common elements or association property made in compliance with Section 718.113(2), Florida Statutes, but excludes:
• Floor, wall or ceiling coverings, electrical fixtures, water heaters, water filters, cabinets, countertops, appliances, window treatments and personal property within the units.

Every unit owner is required to carry coverage for their unit and any improvements or modifications made to their unit (or limited common elements).  Unit Owner coverage must: Continue Reading »

Orlando Condo Investors:  Get ready to rev up your business volume.

Starting February first, the department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is waiving its 90-day “anti-flipping” rule for FHA financing.

Investors who buy and fix up foreclosed and bank-owned properties now will no longer have to wait for 90 days before looking for FHA buyers. Under the prior policy, FHA financing was prohibited on purchases where the seller had acquired the property less than 90 days before the next sale.

The notion was to avoid reselling of condos in short time periods, sometimes with fraudulent appraisals to back spiraling prices – and exposing FHA to greater risk of losses.

Last week FHA commissioner David Stevens sent out an advisory to lenders that the agency plans to waive this policy, with certain key restrictions, for one year, until February of 2011. Continue Reading »

Anyone remember that crazy time toward the end of 2008 when all of our portfolios fell apart?  Through a clever combination of whiskey and denial, most of us have managed to effectively neutral­ize any memory of the actual happenings of the crash.  All we know is that we landed somewhere un­pleasant and the banks are somehow completely to blame.

Well, if you’ll recall, one of the big events that happened back then was that Fed Chairman Ben Ber­nanke swooped in on his mighty steed and said, “Hey AIG: in order to ease your burden here, I’ll make the taxpayers buy all your faulty and most likely worthless assets so you can go back to frolick­ing around the globe insuring whatever it is you people insure.”

And at AIG there was much rejoicing.  Yaaaaaaaay. Continue Reading »

Question: Our members approved a Rental Restriction Policy at the most recent annual meeting which grandfathered existing rentals. Should this policy be put in the recorded bylaws? If a unit is occupied by an owner’s relative, is the unit classified as a rental or as owner occupied? Continue Reading »

CommunityWalk Map – Downtown Orlando Condos

Click the link in the green bar above to see the map in greater detail!

We’ve been working on way for you to conceptualize the downtown Orlando condo & luxury loft scene in conjunction with our new downtown website, and we hope this new map helps. We’re currently still testing the site and there are a couple more downtown Orlando condominiums to be added yet, so let us have any feedback you think might be useful!

The Orlando Business Journal reports that a new state law could make life easier for investors looking to make bulk condo buys. According to current law, buyers who own more than seven condos can find themselves jointly liable when lawsuits are filed against the developer or builder.

Click on article to read full piece

Understandably, this is offputting to investor syndicates looking to pick up hundreds of units at fractured Orlando condo conversion developments.

Helping bulk buyers will unltimately help the Orlando condo market stabilize because when condos are in foreclosure for more than a few months, the home owners assocations cannot collect fees and the threat of special assessments begins to rear its head.

Of course aquiring loans for these large bulk condo purchases is another matter, although there is some evidence to suggest that even this sector of the market may see some improvement in 2010 with the increased chances of condo loans. 

Investors interested in Orlando condo bulk buys should call Condo Metropolis on 407-290-3408.

Say it ain’t so… but after what seems like eons of having to tell our clients that there are virtually “no loans on condos,” the situation may be about to change.

As reported in the Orlando Sentinel mortgage backer Fannie Mae is finally making it easier for people to buy Florida condos that may not have met prior lending standards.

Certain condo complexes have finally started to receive ”special approval” designations, that will allow loans to be made - even when the properties don’t meet one or more of the pre-established rules with respect to delinquent fees, financial reserves and percentage of owner-occupied units.

The great news is that Florida is the only state getting these reviews - which are a first for the Fannie Mae giant.

Teams are now reviewing condos and granting the approvals in cases where the projects are considered stable (even though they may still violate a current Fannie Mae lending standard). For example, a project doesn’t currently qualify for Fannie Mae-backed mortgages if more than 15 percent of the unit owners are behind on their association fees – a rule which frankly has been regarded as a little too harsh.

The Sentinel notes that these condos can viewed at efanniemae.com under (but doesn’t mention that so far, there are no Orlando condos on the list).

According to data from the Florida Association of Realtors, condo prices have fallen more in Orlando than in most U.S. metro areas making them some of the best deals around. The median price for a unit in Metro Orlando in November 2009 was just $55,000, down 21 percent from a year earlier.

Of course Fannie Mae isn’t the only way to get a mortgage. FHA backed mortgages are also available in some cases, although these also don’t generally extend to the condominiums that Fannie Mae has also struggled with until now. Of all the downtown Orlando condos, only one such complex currently qualifies, 101 Eola Condos.

For more information and the lastest Orlando condo news, call Orlando’s condo specialist brokerage, Condo Metropolis on 407-290-3408.