South Tampa Homes for Sale

Six reasons why it’s still a good time to buy

NEW YORK – March 31, 2009 – The housing market is looking healthier. Here are six reasons why now is the time to jump into the market.

1. Uncle Sam is willing to help. First-time buyers (defined as anyone who hasn’t owned a home in the last three years) are entitled to a maximum $8,000 tax credit; interest rates are at record lows; and the Federal Reserve is doing its best to make mortgage loans available.

2. People have to live somewhere. About 800,000 new households are formed each year in this country, ensuring that the housing market will tighten, even if the economy doesn’t soar.

3. Borrowers leverage their investment. If you put $10,000 into the stock market and it earns 10 percent, you’ve earned $1,000. If you put $10,000 down on a home and its values increases 10 percent, you’ve made $10,000.

4. When prices come back up, you’ll have instant equity. In parts of the country where foreclosures have driven down prices, better times will mean the price of the home you buy will rise rapidly.

5. Mortgage costs stay the same. If you get a fixed-rate mortgage, the monthly payment stays the same – while everything else, including rent, goes upward.

6. You own it. There is something comforting in the notion that your home is your own. You can paint it any color you want, let the dog run in the back yard and hang a swing for the kids in the front.

Want to learn more about the home buyer tax credit? You can sign up for NAR’s upcoming Webinar, “Build Your Business Using the Improved Home Buyer Tax Credit” set for April 28.  For more information click here.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, June Fletcher (03/27/2009)

There are many good deals I’m seeing in the South Tampa market today that are foreclosures and short sales.  The short sales are a bit trickier to land, but I’ve experienced some recent success getting the lender to accept a low offer.  I just had one approved that was listed at $165K and we offered $135K.  The buyer thought I was crazy sending him that one because he was only approved at $135K.  I told him that you never know what they will take until you submit an offer.  To his delight, they accepted the $135K and he ended up getting the opportunity to own a much nicer home than he thought he would get.  It even had a very nice pool.  Foreclosures, REO’s (Real Estate Owned), and Bank Owned properties which are all the same thing, are a little easier to pick up.  Typically, we are seeing a 48 hour turn around on a response from the bank to an offer.  Unfortunately, you are up against cash buyers most of the time on the really good ones, but many will accept conventional financing and FHA.  Most are in an unacceptable condition for FHA, but not the FHA rehab loan which is becoming more and more popular.  I would be happy to go over any of the above information more in depth with you if you have interest in looking at your options.

Exit Bayshore Realty is rolling out the MacDill AFB Mover’s Rebate Program.  We will rebate a portion our commission when you buy a home from us.  This offer is extended to active and retired Military and anyone working on or affiliated with MacDill Air Force Base.  Our program is of more benefit to home buyers than the USAA Mover’s Advantage and Navy Fed’s Realty Plus programs as we don’t require you to use a certain lender or title company.  You choose to use whoever you wish which enables you to receive special incentives on financing at times and can save you money on your closing costs.  For more information about this program, feel free to contact Buster Levin at 813-294-1420.

Welcome to MacDill Air Force Base and the beautiful state of Florida! MacDill Air Force Base is located eight miles south of Tampa on the Southwestern tip of the Interbay Peninsula in Hillsborough County.

The region is referred to as “Tampa Bay,” which is a seven-county region on Florida’s west coast offering a variety of communities. The counties of Hernando, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk and Sarasota come together to shape a vibrant market where lifestyle options reflect the best of what Florida has to offer. The location of MacDill is ideal for tourism. The area is filled with activities that can be enjoyed by the entire family. Everything from parks, museums, concerts and a healthy nightlife can be found here.

MacDill AFB is home of the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command (AMC) 6th Air Mobility Wing (6th AMW) and is a part of the AMC’s Eighteenth Air Force.

The 6th AMW is a 3,000-person force capable of rapidly projecting air refueling power anywhere in the world. They are organized into five groups in order to carry out their mission to be America’s premier mobility team providing world-class air refueling, responsive airlift and airbase support to Headquarters U.S. Central Command, Headquarters U.S. Special Operations Command and 51 other mission partners that all call MacDill home.