Jim Shaw Realtor Naples Florida Luxury Properties

The Downtown Naples Association has announced its calendar of events for the 2008 holiday season. Some of these are:

■ Naples Main Street Christmas Walk and Avenue of Lights on Thursday, Dec. 4, from 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Santa and Naples Mayor Bill Barnett will light the 25-foot Christmas tree in Sugden Theater Plaza at 6 p.m.

■ Naples Christmas Parade on Tuesday, Dec. 9, starting at 6 p.m. from Broad Avenue South to Eighth Street South.

■ Tuba Christmas on Wednesday, Dec. 10, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. This features a tuba band playing Christmas carols in the Sugden Plaza.

■ Evening on Fifth on Thursday, Dec. 11, from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. with music, shopping and dining.

■ Moonlight Madness! on Saturday, Dec. 13, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. for a shopping event on Fifth Avenue South.

■ Community Hanukkah Celebration, on Monday, Dec. 22, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Sugden Theatre Plaza on Fifth Avenue South.

■ Downtown Naples New Year's Eve Art Festival, Dec. 27 and 28 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. with fine art exhibits.

More information: (239) 435-3742 or www.fifthavenuesouth.com.

The snow birds are returning in large numbers back to their winter residences in Cedar Hammock Golf & Country Club. Both the Ladies and Men's golf leagues are underway.

The 23,000 square foot clubhouse will soon be renovated with Halloween decorations in preparation for the big Halloween Party November 1^st. Members are encouraged to come in their best fright-night costumes and receive awards for their efforts. All members are invited with or without a Halloween costume.

The Clubhouse Calendar for November:

Happy Halloween to all!

The national media is focusing on the following:

• $700 billion dollar bailout

• Shocking stock market losses

• World economies in turmoil

• Unemployment is rising while IRA's & 401K's are sinking

• Fear and anxiety run rampant

• McCain & Obama spending untold millions to get elected

• Paris Hilton is hunting for a new BFFL (Best Friends For Life)

• Hugh Hefner lost one of his girl friends

• Madonna is getting a divorce

And the media loves every minute of it!

Lenders have had to establish "Loss Mitigation Departments" because of the millions of people who can no longer pay their mortgage payments. I'm guessing that the vast majority of them have very good reasons why, such as loss of a job, loss of income, health reasons, their employer went bankrupt, etc.

Being thrown out of your primary residence would be so ugly these folks will likely be emotionally scared for the remainder of their lives.

Lenders are finally beginning to get the picture they can't foreclose on everyone or else they would soon own millions and millions of homes and condominiums. So they setup departments to handle the late payers and possibly work out some sort of arrangement that could possibly keep the homeowner from living in their cars or on the streets.

That is the responsible and compassionate thing to do.

However, not everyone is invited to the party.

Congress, the presidential candidates, and the lenders all seem to have made room for those whose Primary Residence is going to be foreclosed on.

But what about the millions and millions of owners who have mortgages on a second home or an investment property?

The national rhetoric has turned its back on them.

I wonder how many congressmen have vacation homes and or investment property?

What did these people do wrong?

Did they do something illegal, unethical, or immoral?

Actually no, but they are being profiled as a real estate "Flipper!"

During the property value run-up, between 2002-2005, the dastardly flippers were making lots of money and that angered the law makers.

How dare they make money, eh?

Apparently, the law makers need to dust off their books on American capitalism for a refresher review.

Housing is on the law maker's radar screens and help has been forthcoming with more likely to follow.

Yet, no one is talking about the Joe Sixpack's who own a vacation home or are landlords. Their vacation homes and condo rental property values have suffered exactly the same as those who own a primary residence.

Realtors and their local, state, and national organizations should be educating the law makers on this huge group of owners because it is the right thing to do and because it is a huge part of the residential real estate business.

The real estate meltdown has the country up to its hips in alligators. Unprecedented numbers of foreclosure filings in almost every state in America, including my state, Florida. My county is Collier County long noted for its immense wealth but it is not escaping from record numbers of foreclosures and short sales.

The $700 billion bailout is supposed to bring some relief by loosening credit and raising consumer confidence levels.

Most all the mortgage lenders have "Loss Mitigation" departments reeling and dealing with the 6 plus million potential foreclosures.

Foreclosure is a terrible thing as the owners are evicted from their homes and their credit is destroyed for many years to come.

That is a pretty bleak scenario for the borrowers and the lenders!

Now let's fast forward a few years when both the financial and real estate markets have turned the corner and are steadily moving up.

I picture millions of the same people who were forced into foreclosure now have a good job and money to buy a home or condo again.

So they go to lender to get a mortgage but their credit report has the big "F-word" on it. The lender refuses to grant the mortgage and loses income. The borrowers do not get a mortgage and neither party has gained.

What's wrong with this picture? If in fact, there are 6 plus million foreclosures, as the media continues to report, it is a ginormous number of missed profit opportunities for lenders.

I think it is way too many for lenders to ignore and keep their P&L Statements in black ink.

What's the solution?

In my view of the near future, lenders will have to revise their credit policies to reflect the reality that so many of these hard-working people were caught between a rock and a hard place and not hold them to the 7 or so years of ruined credit.

Aren't banks in business to make money? That's going to be very challenging if they refuse to do business with millions of customers.

How do you see it?

What Do You Mean They're Closed?#@^%&****?

Another shoe fell the other day as reported in our local newspaper.

The real estate developer, the Ronto Group, shut down the amenities at Palmira Golf & Country Club in Bonita Springs.

The golf course, clubhouse, pro shop, renaissance center, etc. are closed with no services being provided and no facilities, including the golf course being maintained.

The homeowners were caught off guard as they were unaware of such a drastic possibility. They have formed a committee, hired a national law firm, and are proceeding with caution to determine what their rights are and what they can do to save their community's amenity package and protect their investments.

Preceding Palmira's bad news WCI Communities, a luxury regional developer was forced into bankruptcy. But as of this date, no services were stopped and all facilities are being maintained.

Additionaly, Ginn Resorts had missed a debt payment on their high-end golf course community, Quail West, located in Bonita Springs. Currently, all the amenities are open for its members.

Who's next?

No one knows but each day the housing debacle continues is one day closer to having another regional or national developer failure.

Realtors should be advising their clients to be sure and do their "Due Diligence" on developers as most of them are publicly traded on the stock exchange; therefore, making their financial statements available to the public.