Jana Hristova

Lately, I avoid discussing what I do for a living because I get the same reaction, "It must be tough, how do you survive in this market?"

The reality however is quite different. Most buyers, when we start looking, are surprised that they can make reasonable offers and not get the house. Even though we are in a buyer's market the properties available to buyers who wants to close within 30 days and are priced well are not many. The market seems bloated with short sales , which are ignored by most buyers.

To determine if we are in a buyer's market let's look at one important measure of the health of the real estate market: inventory depletion, which is simply a measure of how long it will take to sell the homes that are currently on the market.

For example, on April 14th , 2009, the bank owned single family homes in Riverview are 20, short sales - 205, regular listings- 250.

In the last 3 months, 207 single family homes sold in Riverview, only 37 of those 207 were short sales.

Currently, there are 564 active listings, 205 of those are short sales.

Let's calculate the inventory depletion with short sales and without:

Inventory depletion with short sales = 564 active listings ÷ 69 homes sold per month = 8 months inventory depletion

Inventory depletion without short sales = 270 active listings ÷ 56 homes sold per month = 4.82 months of marketing time

The definition of buyer's market is " marketing time of six months or more." The conclusion is clear.

Visit us at Tampa Real Estate Book for bank owned homes in Riverview and Tampa Bay.

Visit Best Deal Home for builder inventories and new construction homes in Tampa.

February, 2009 Total Units Sold: 2472

City/Area Average Sold Price Price per Sq.Ft.

Apollo Beach $248,652 $107

Clearwater $207,533 $117

St. Petersburg $154,112 $95

Tampa $184,243 $91

Brandon $146,803 $74

Largo $153,717 $89

Palm Harbor $216,000 $102

Spring Hill $116,000 $63

Town 'n' Country $108,000 $66

Temple Terrace $130,000 $74

Thonotossasa $443,000 $105

Dunedin $172,000 $103

Dover $268,000 $106

Greater Carrollwood $109,000 $69

Gibsonton $110,000 $65

Holiday $70,000 $54

Land O' Lakes $182,000 $85

Lutz $272,000 $106

Lithia $277,000 $106

New Port Richey $121,000 $67

Oldsmar $182,000 $97

Odessa $369,000 $123

Pinellas Park $102,000 $81

Plant City $134,000 $75

Riverview $166,000 $79

Ruskin $122,000 $64

Safety Harbor $219,000 $114

Seminole $200,000 $109

Seffner $143,000 $82

Sun City $113,000 $71

Tarpon Springs $173,000 $105

Valrico $169,000 $84

Westchase $288,000 $128

Zephyrhills $80,000 $58

This report reflects only resale homes.

Tampa Bay New Homes for Sale

February, 2009 Total Units Sold: 1918 Pending Sales: 5568

City/Area Average Sold Price Price per Sq.Ft.

Apollo Beach $174,769 $88

Clearwater $178,093 $116

St. Petersburg $146,000 $98

Tampa $166,000 $87

Brandon $155,000 $78

Largo $147,000 $91

Palm Harbor $173,000 $100

Spring Hill $109,000 $59

Town 'n' Country $105,000 $63

Temple Terrace $123,000 $77

Thonotossasa $171,000 $58

Dunedin $156,000 $106

Dover $136,000 $66

Greater Carrollwood $147,000 $78

Gibsonton $140,000 $63

Holiday $64,000 $49

Land O' Lakes $183,000 $83

Lutz $258,000 $105

Lithia $273,000 $105

New Port Richey $99,000 $64

Oldsmar $245,000 $117

Odessa $414,000 $111

Pinellas Park $103,000 $82

Plant City $112,000 $69

Riverview $160,000 $82

Ruskin $144,000 $77

Safety Harbor $310,000 $118

Seminole $168,000 $104

Seffner $184,000 $91

Sun City $115,000 $76

Tarpon Springs $203,000 $109

Valrico $182,000 $82

Westchase $283,000 $129

Zephyrhills $84,000 $62

This report reflects only resale homes.

Tampa Bay New Homes for Sale

In Hillsborough county, bidding on foreclosed property doesn't really  happen at the court steps  but in room 201 in the George Edgecomb Courthouse. Everyday at 2 p.m., Monday through Thursday,  people gather to bid on foreclosures hoping to get a great bargain, possibly  35%-45% off  market values.

 Usually the domain of experienced investors, more and more buyers are asking me about buying at the court steps.  Here is a very short guide of what you need to know to get started.

 

1.        Decide on the type of property you want to buy and the location. This will narrow down your search significantly.

 

2.       Have realistic expectations - many of the auctioned properties will be canceled, most will be bought  back by the lenders.

 

3.       Make sure you have cash on hand - 5% of the final bid is required immediately and the remaining balance is due the next day by 12 p.m.

 

 

4.       Get a list with properties ready to be auctioned at the courthouse. Here is a link

ftp://www.hillsclerk.com/civil/foreclosure_list/

This list includes the case numbers and the names of the defendants.

For more information on how to research the case numbers go to:

http://www.hillsclerk.com/publicweb/Foreclosure_Sales.aspx

What you will find online is the amount of the final judgment and property address.

 

 

5.       Do research on the properties you are interested in:

 

•·         Determine if the lien holder foreclosing  is the senior lien holders - senior by date or subordination

•·         Are there any unpaid property taxes (they will not be wiped out so make sure you are including

            that in your calculations)

•·         Any mechanics liens - they might have a claim and in certain cases are not wiped out

•·         IRS liens - junior IRS liens are wiped out but there is a redemption period of 120 days.

•·         HOA  liens should be wiped out but in reality the association might fight you to recover those fees.

•·         What is the current market price of the property .  Make sure the reward is worth the risk.

 

And finally, if you are in doubt consult an attorney  or title company. The information above is just a guide and is not a substitute for professional  legal advice.

 

If you decide that buying at the court steps is not for you, here is  a link to REOs bank-owned properties. The buying process is easier and less risky.

Here is another home, victim of greed.

Here are the numbers:

The investor bought this house for $250,000 in 2005. Tried to sell it in 2006 for $315,000, missed the market and lost the house.

This house has never been rented or lived in since it has been buit.

The home right now is for sale at $189,900

Market Value according to Zillow.com : $219,500

More info: Riverview, 4BR, 2.5BA, 2CG on a pond, 3111 sq.ft.

More Tampa Bay bank-owned homes

Builder inventories