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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

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, [...]

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 [...]

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?

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 [...]

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.
Understandably, this is offputting to investor syndicates looking to pick [...]

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 [...]