Maitland, FL

Don’t lose your home to foreclosure. These smart homeowners didn’t. Instead, they put their home on the market as a Short Sale.

Street	Date Sold	Original List Price	Sold Price	Beds	Baths	Sq Ft	Pool
MELANIE	10/30/09	$1,025,000	$417,000	4	4	4313	N

Properties have been listed and sold by various MLS members.

Data drawn from the My Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service.

Because the payoff of a loan will be ‘shorted’ by a significant amount, the mortgage lender must approve a Short Sale. Handled properly, the likelihood of successfully selling your house as a Short Sale is high. Once the Short Sale is behind you, you can often get on with your life with hardly a backward glance.

A Short Sale is nothing more than putting your house up for sale in the usual manner, waiting for a qualified buyer just like any other home seller would, facing a few extra hurdles, filling out additional paperwork, waiting a bit longer for the closing to take place, and finally moving out and moving on.

Real benefits come with selling your house as a Short Sale. Among them are: 1) substantially reducing or completely eliminating financial liability, 2) minimizing damage to your credit rating, 3) emerging from bad credit quicker than you would with a foreclosure, and 4) having a sense of satisfaction that you’re taking care of the problem proactively and responsibly.

These statistics should give you a feel for what’s happening in the luxury segment of the Orlando FL real estate market.

Street	Date Sold	Original List Price	Sold Price	Beds	Baths	Sq Ft	Pool
MELANIE	10/30/09	$1,025,000	$417,000	4	4	4313	N
SHELL	10/28/09	$839,900	$767,350	4	3	3130	Y
BRIGHTWATER	10/20/09	$699,000	$590,000	4	4	3340	Y
VERSAILLES	10/15/09	$675,000	$503,400	5	3	3175	Y
LYNDALE	10/16/09	$609,900	$370,000	4	2	2303	Y

Properties have been listed and sold by various MLS members.

Data drawn from the My Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service.

A few tidbits of note ...

Homes listed above $500,000 often take longer to sell than properties priced at the lower end of the market. While many houses priced below $500,000 may take 6 or 7 months to sell, homes in upscale neighborhoods may take as much as 2 years to unload.

Keep in mind that some of these sales are for Short Sales or Foreclosed/Bank-Owned properties. Under these situations, the Sold Price may be considerably below the Original List Price. Sorry to say, ‘distressed’ sales drag down the values of all the other homes in the neighborhood, whether or not they’re Short Sales or Foreclosures. On the other hand ...

Steep discounts may NOT reflect a distressed situation. Just because a house sold for considerably less than original list price doesn’t necessarily mean it was a foreclosure or short sale property. Because luxury homes are often one-of-a-kind, it’s difficult to find comparable properties that will help in determining current market value. In the end, it’s a buyer — and not the seller — who determines the market value of a property.

What’s the long-term outlook for the Orlando FL real estate market? Prices have leveled off in recent months. Even so, due to rising unemployment and foreclosure/short sale saturation, it will probably take several years — perhaps as long as a decade or more — for home prices to completely recover.

What about homeowners who are having difficulty keeping up with mortgage payments but can’t sell because their house is worth less than the amount owed on their loan? There are several solutions, but the way a Realtor^® can help is by selling the house as a Short Sale.

The following are the market sales statistics for Maitland, Seminole and Orange Counties, Florida for October 2009. Maitland is made up of the zip code 32751. For purposes of this analysis we will be splitting the data according to single-family homes vs, condominiums, townhomes and villas.

A couple of definitions are in order. The median sales price means that 50% of the homes sold for more and 50% of the homes sold for less during a certain period of time - in other words, it's the midpoint of sale prices. So basically what this means, is that the median sales price is showing market activity in that it's specifically indicating which price range is more active.

The average sales price, as opposed to the median sales price, is the total volume of sold properties divided by the number of properties sold.

The sales to list price ratio is just that, you're dividing the average sales price by the average list price and coming up with a percentage that tells you how much of the list price the average homes sold for.

There needs to be a disclaimer here. These stats are only as good as telling us what it being purchased and happening at a certain period in time. Also, it needs to be fully understood that not only is real estate local, but it is hyper-local. What this means is that the trends that we hear about are overall. Let's put it this way, what's happening in one neighborhood, may not be realized in the neighborhood next door.

Additionally, these are only monthly statistics and to get a better scope of what is happening, you need to look at a longer period of time. More high-end homes might be sold in one month as opposed to another. By looking at a longer period, you will get a better overall picture. It is all relative and this has to be understood when utilizing these stats.

Single-Family Homes

11 homes sold during the month of October.

The average sales price is $350,795 with 215 days on the market.

The median sales price is $335,000.

The sales to list price ratio is 94%.

The most expensive home sold for $767,350 in Maitland Isle and was on the market 54 days

The least expensive home sold for $58,000 in Hamlet at Maitland after 64 days on the market.

The average sales price for the same period a year earlier was $333,857 with 173 days on the market with a sales to list price ratio of 92% on 7 sales, an increase of 57%.

The month to month changes show an in crease in the average sales price of 32% with an increase in the median sales price of 53%. There was a decrease in sales volume of 45% with no change in the sales to list price ratio.

Condos, Townhomes & Villas

12 homes sold

The average sales price is $71,504 with 167 days on the market.

The median sales price is $62,250.

The sales to list price ratio is 94%.

The most expensive condo sold for $185,000 in West Cove Condo and was on the market 423 days.

The least expensive condo sold for $25,000 in Carrington Park after 120 days on the market.

The average sales price a year earlier was $95,267 with 87 days on the market with a sales to list price ratio of 97% on 4 sales, a 2000% increase.

The month to month changes show an increase in the average sales price of 44% with an increase in the median sales price of 15%. There was a 20% increase in sales volume with a 1% decrease in the sales to list price ratio.

For information on Maitland and Seminole and Orange County real estate and Maitland and Seminole and Orange County homes for sale in addition to Maitland and Seminole and Orange County relocation contact Marc Grossman, your Maitland and Seminole and Orange County Realtor @ 407-463-1034. Additional information is available for Seminole County real estate, Orange County real estate, West Volusia County and South Lake County.

To learn more about Marc and the services he has to offer, visit his website.

Marc Grossman, GRI - http://www.OrlandoHomes-4u.com/ - 407-463-1034

You can read Marc's other blogs Real Estate Morsels, Real Estate Off The Leash & Real Estate Cracker

Marc donates 10% of his net proceeds to Hospice of the Comforter.

Marc It Sold!

The following are the market sales statistics for Maitland, Seminole and Orange Counties, Florida for September 2009. Maitland is made up of the zip code 32751. For purposes of this analysis we will be splitting the data according to single-family homes vs, condominiums, townhomes and villas.

A couple of definitions are in order. The median sales price means that 50% of the homes sold for more and 50% of the homes sold for less during a certain period of time - in other words, it's the midpoint of sale prices. So basically what this means, is that the median sales price is showing market activity in that it's specifically indicating which price range is more active.

The average sales price, as opposed to the median sales price, is the total volume of sold properties divided by the number of properties sold.

The sales to list price ratio is just that, you're dividing the average sales price by the average list price and coming up with a percentage that tells you how much of the list price the average homes sold for.

There needs to be a disclaimer here. These stats are only as good as telling us what it being purchased and happening at a certain period in time. Also, it needs to be fully understood that not only is real estate local, but it is hyper-local. What this means is that the trends that we hear about are overall. Let's put it this way, what's happening in one neighborhood, may not be realized in the neighborhood next door.

Additionally, these are only monthly statistics and to get a better scope of what is happening, you need to look at a longer period of time. More high-end homes might be sold in one month as opposed to another. By looking at a longer period, you will get a better overall picture. It is all relative and this has to be understood when utilizing these stats.

Single-Family Homes

20 homes sold during the month of September.

The average sales price is $266,750 with 142 days on the market.

The median sales price is $218,500.

The sales to list price ratio is 94%.

The most expensive home sold for $680K in Lake Colony and was on the market 353 days

The least expensive home sold for $103,000 in Lakewood Shores after 356 days on the market.

The average sales price for the same period a year earlier was $381,409 with 71 days on the market with a sales to list price ratio of 92% on 11 sales, an increase of 82%.

The month to month changes show a decrease in the average sales price of 18% with an increase in the median sales price of 20%. There was an increase in sales volume of 233% with a 1% increase in the sales to list price ratio.

Condos, Townhomes & Villas

10 homes sold

The average sales price is $49,763 with 117 days on the market.

The median sales price is $54,000.

The sales to list price ratio is 95%.

The most expensive condo sold for $75,000 in Visconti East and was on the market 389 days.

The least expensive condo sold for $18,000 in Carrington Park after 139 days on the market.

The average sales price a year earlier was $127,925 with 99 days on the market with a sales to list price ratio of 93% on 4 sales, a 150% increase.

The month to month changes show a decrease in the average sales price of 12% with a decrease in the median sales price of 18%. There was an 11% increase in sales volume with a 10% decrease in the sales to list price ratio.

For information on Maitland and Seminole and Orange County real estate and Maitland and Seminole and Orange County homes for sale in addition to Maitland and Seminole and Orange County relocation contact Marc Grossman, your Maitland and Seminole and Orange County Realtor @ 407-463-1034. Additional information is available for Seminole County real estate, Orange County real estate, West Volusia County and South Lake County.

To learn more about Marc and the services he has to offer, visit his website.

Marc Grossman, GRI - http://www.OrlandoHomes-4u.com/ - 407-463-1034

You can read Marc's other blogs Real Estate Morsels, Real Estate Off The Leash & Real Estate Cracker

Marc donates 10% of his net proceeds to Hospice of the Comforter.

Marc It Sold!

These smart homeowners didn’t have to lose their house to foreclosure. Instead, they hired a real estate agent to help them sell their house as a Short Sale.

By finding a ready, willing, and able buyer, they were able to stop foreclosure proceedings in their tracks and walk away with a clean ‘financial’ bill of health. In some cases, they may have had to sign a promissory note for a percentage of their total obligation. The important thing, however, is that they were able to salvage the ruinous credit rating they would have incurred with a foreclosure. Better yet, in as little as two years — or even less — they’ll be able to purchase a new home with a conventional mortgage.

Street	Date Sold	Original List Price	Sold Price	Beds	Baths	Sq Ft	Pool
SHAWNEE	09/14/09	$324,900	$225,000	3	2	1529	Y
HURON	09/22/09	$349,900	$320,000	4	3	2312	Y

Properties have been listed and sold by various MLS members.

Data drawn from the My Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service.

What is a Short Sale?

A Short Sale occurs when market conditions make it impossible to sell a house at a price that allows the borrower to pay off the mortgage loan and associated closing costs in full. In these cases, the mortgage lender must agree to Short Sale terms before a house can be sold. Why? Because the payback of the loan will be ‘shorted’ a significant amount and the lender will be forced to take a loss.

Understanding How a Short Sale Can Often Help

Mortgage lenders must cooperate with borrowers in order to facilitate a Short Sale. Doing so helps them avoid the even higher costs associated with foreclosure proceedings.

Selling a house as a Short Sale can be complicated and time-consuming. The same proof of financial condition submitted when the homeowners first took out their home loan must be submitted anew in order to successfully settle the loan under Short Sale conditions. Lenders must evaluate each Short Sale on a case-by-case basis, and the approval process can often be long and frustrating ... or sometimes short and sweet.

Once a purchase contract is being considered for a Short Sale, foreclosure proceedings, if there are any, can usually be put on hold.

In order to approve a Short Sale, lenders take into account several factors, among them the borrowers’ personal and financial situation, local real estate conditions, the market value of the house, and the strength of the purchase contract. Borrowers must also make a convincing argument that they —

• Cannot keep up with loan payments due to unemployment, job relocation, divorce, medical expenses, or other long-term financial crisis
• Have no choice but to sell their house
• Can’t repay the loan in full given current market values

The Process of a Short Sale

Homeowners must jump through a few extra hoops, but these extra tasks are no more difficult than the process they originally went through to purchase their house.

• Put House on the Market - Because the borrower’s lender must validate that the house was marketed and contracted at arm’s length, a homeowner cannot sell the house on his own but must list it with a real estate broker.
• Short Sale Package - Once a Sale & Purchase Contract is finalized, homeowners must assemble personal financial information that will be submitted to their lender in support of making their Short Sale claim.
• Selling & Marketing Package - Your real estate agent should put together a Market Report reflecting the selling circumstances of the house as well as the real estate conditions of the neighborhood and town.
• Lender Approval - After the lender has received everything, they will order an Appraisal or Broker’s Price Opinion, which is an independent determination of the house’s market value. Then, after evaluating everything, the bank will make a decision.

As difficult as a Short Sale may be, it’s important for homeowners to be prepared for anything and to proactively deal with any problems that come along. It’s also important for them to also contact an attorney and/or tax accountant.