Jamaican Real Estate Becoming A Showcase For High-End Living

February 13, 2009
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Majority of the world’s real estate destinations maybe experiencing a downturn but Jamaica is definitely on a roll. This exotic country is your typical developing country with glimpse of poverty on the side and luxurious golf courses and resorts on the side.  However, beyond the usual scenery lies the beginning of a property boom characterized by the Palmyra Resort which has been transplanted straight from far away Miami. With 11 villas and 277 apartments to cater to tourists and real estate investors at a price of up to $3.5 million for beachfront villas, Jamaica is fast becoming a showcase for high-end living.

The government has recently announced the construction of an…

Real Estate Brokerage Firm Included In List Of 15 Firms To Go Bankrupt In 2009

February 13, 2009
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The country’s biggest real estate brokerage firm is included in the list of 15 firms projected to quote Chapter 11 and declare bankruptcy by 2009.  Realogy Corporation, which is a privately-owned company employing about 13,000 workers, include the Sotheby, ERA and Coldwell franchises. It is a prime mover in the relocation and real estate services. The trouble in Realogy started as early as 2007 when it was purchased by the Apollo Group.  The high debt load of the company started at almost the same the housing market took a nosedive. What made the problem worse was Realogy’s attempt to refinance most of its debt which yielded several lawsuits.

Realogy’s reach is…

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Filed Under: Economy Crisis, Real Estate Crisis

Fannie Mae Relaxes Rules On Home Loan Refinancing

February 13, 2009
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When the going gets tough, the rules get going. This seems to be the case with the loosening of standards by Fannie Mae to remedy the housing and real estate crisis the country is experiencing today. Other sectors however disagree saying it was Fannie Mae’s loose standards that caused the housing crisis in the first place. Doomsayers say the housing problem is getting worse while positive thinkers would like to believe that that the sector is on recovery. No matter what you believe, Fannie Mae decided to relax their rules to give more leeway to homeowners to avail of refinancing. This strategy is expected to counter a total meltdown of…

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Filed Under: Lenders, Mortgages

Obama’s Team Ups Demand For DC Condos

February 12, 2009
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Capitol Hills’s condominium market is experiencing a surge thanks to President Barack Obama, specifically to his team who are starting to migrate to the country’s capital city. The increasing demand for abode and condominium units has somehow created an excitement among Capitol Hill’s real estate sector which has also been feeling the economic slump. Condominium sellers in the area have started to spruce up their units with a view of having them rented or sold to the administration’s staff and team.

Almost half of the city’s condominium inventory is located in Washington, D.C. and this is where Obama’s people are headed now that he has started his first weeks in office.…

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Filed Under: Luxury Real Estate, Real Estate Investment

Mortgage Rates Up

February 12, 2009
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Mortgage rates are up as seen from the Primary Mortgage Market Survey or PMMS recently released by Freddie Mac. The survey shows an average 5.25% for the 30-year fixed rate mortgage with 0.8 point for the week of February 5 compared to the 5.10% average rate prior to that week. The survey also shows an increase in the 15-year fixed mortgage rate from 4.80% the previous week to 4.92% for the week ending February 5.

Freddie Mac vice president Frank Nothaft said the positive economic reports resulted to an increase in the fixed-rate mortgage interest rates. This can be good news or bad news depending on which side of the fence…

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Filed Under: Mortgages

Banks, Lenders Oppose Bankruptcy Legislation

February 12, 2009
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The cramdown legislation being fasttracked in Congress may cut back on the number of foreclosures in the country but the controversial proposal is already being opposed by bankers and lenders.  The bill allows bankruptcy courts to dictate the lender as to the total amount owed by the homeowner to the lender to prevent a foreclosure.  For example, you owe your lender $300,000 but the bank can tell your lender that since the property is only worth P$150,000 then that’s all you owe and need to pay to avoid foreclosure.

Once it becomes a law, the cramdown legislation will empower the courts to cram down or cut the interest rates as well…

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Filed Under: Economy Crisis, Foreclosures

Orlando Homeowners Desperate To Sell Their Homes

February 12, 2009
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It seems that residents are getting away from the United States’ skiing and snowboarding capital, Colorado as fast as they can. If not for anything else these homeowners are probably just in a hurry to get rid of the burden of paying housing mortgages that run so high these days.

One in three homeowners in Colorado is reportedly taking even a losing price just to sell their houses whose market prices have plunged 20 percent year-over-year. Take note of this Orlando house bought at $329,000 in 2006 but is now listed for sale on Zillow at a very low price. The homeowner is losing $40,000 in offering it at $289,000 only.

Another instance…

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Filed Under: Economy Crisis, Real Estate

Industry Players Urged To Team Up To Avoid Foreclosures

February 12, 2009
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Crisis is a time of uniting forces to survive.  People can be effective alone but they can become efficient when working as a team.

The challenge for industry players is to ride out the property bubble burst which has sent mortgage into a meltdown with defaults running high because property owners could no longer afford to pay due to soaring interest rates.

Then why not create a team to fight foreclosures, save the property for the owners and at the same time rake in monetary opportunities out of the service?  Your team might someday be honored for saving the American dream of home ownership while also saving professional careers.

You can group together professionals who have…

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Filed Under: Foreclosures

Commercial Real Estate Faced With Credit Lack Woes

February 12, 2009
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Federal policy-makers have a real and urgent reason to act fast and save the country’s commercial real estate from crashing due to lack of credit.

The sector is a huge contributor to the national economy, providing more than nine million jobs and generating millions of dollars in revenues for the federal, regional and local coffers to spend for infrastructure, education and other vital services.

National Association of Realtors (NAR) president Charles McMillan is right in urging the policymakers to come up with measures to restore the capacity of lenders to  refinance commercial real estate loans, otherwise, defaults would run high adding burden to the already crisis saddled economy.

People are hoping that policymakers…

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Filed Under: Economy Crisis, Real Estate Crisis
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