South Tampa Homes for Sale

Riding my bike along Bayshore a couple of weekends ago, I was thinking about all the South Tampa homes I know of that have sold and rented in South Tampa over the last year or so. Every home that I noticed in Ballast Point that had been for sale or rent had sold or rented. Several homes were currently being rehabbed and there is a good amount of new homes being constructed. It continues to amaze me what kind of opportunity there is in South Tampa on so many levels of real estate. Whether someone is looking to buy, rent and hold, or rehab and flip, there are deals to be had. More and more knock downs and new homes are starting to pop up and that side of things will grow over the next few years as I’m already seeing it happen with several builders.

I’m working with several buyers in the $200-$250K looking for South Tampa Townhomes, and we can’t find anything available for the last 6 months. When something does come on the market, it’s immediately jumped on by all the buyers in that range because there is a shortage in supply for those homes.

Due to all the negative media about the real estate market, the general public shys away from making smart real estate purchases and the smart money makes it by scooping up all the deals and renting them back to the people sitting on the fence. People have the tendency to make the national real estate market statistics their own local statistics in their mind and nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to  South Tampa homes. Prices are starting to go up in pockets and now is the time people will look back and say I could have bought this for that while kicking themselves that they didn’t. Those facts combined with the lowest interest rates that will probably ever be seen in our lifetime make this environment the perfect storm of a real estate opportunity. The gold rush is on in South Tampa so come get a deal before they are all gone.

If you’ve ever heard the saying, the writing is on the wall, below are some reasons and articles below why I believe the writing is definitely on the wall when it comes to purchasing South Tampa homes.

1.  Florida leads the Nation in potential job growth.  MIAMI – April 15, 2011 – According to a Wells Fargo report released this week, Florida is No. 1 in potential job growth once the state shakes off lingering effects from the recession.

The study looked at regional competitiveness – the factors that might lead employers to create jobs locally. To compile results, Wells Fargo analyzed 20 years of employment data and growth trends. It then projected future growth. While an expected boost in tourism post-recession played a part in Florida’s ranking, Wells Fargo also cited an expanded diversity in the state’s job market, such as the Scripps Research facility in Palm Beach County.

“The influx of new medical research facilities will help reinvigorate … growth in Florida, helping further diversify the state’s economy,” according to the report.

The study found Florida competitive in 22 industries. Georgia – No. 2 on the list – had 21. Wells Fargo considered traditionally white-collar industries as Florida strengths, including professional services, insurance and finance.

2.  Rising Rents could spark more buyers.  More buyers may enter the market as the entry price of ownership drops and the cost of renting continues to rise. Read more here.

3.  Americans still optimistic about housing.  Pew Research Center survey: 81% of adults say homeownership is the best long-term investment a person can make. Read more here.

4.  Investors, foreigners cashing in on market.  U.S. logs a record number of all-cash purchases, and some experts predict that number will only grow higher. Read more here.

5.  Beazer Homes, one of the largest home builders in America, sets up home rental business.  Facing a slow new home market, the builder will buy, upgrade and rent existing homes to purchase-shy consumers. Read more here.

6.  Metrostudy: Housing shortage on the horizon?  No April Fools joke: Construction slowdown lowered inventory; as more jobs spark buyer demand, home prices will rise. Read more here.

Whether you are a first time homebuyer or an investor looking to buy, rent and hold or flip, South Tampa has some great opportunities.  It’s not easy to pick up these deals with all the interest, but that’s why it pays to have a seasoned Realtor on your side who knows the ins and outs of the South Tampa Short Sale and Foreclosure market.  The wholesale market has continued to go lower while the retail market has remained strong and has shown recent signs of rising prices.  This spells even better news as you can buy homes for less while there value after being repaired remains solid.  To view South Tampa homes and find a great deal, please visit my website at www.SouthTampaSpecialist.com

“If you don’t own a home, buy one. If you own one home, buy another one. And if you own two homes, buy a third and lend your relatives the money to buy one.”

– John Paulson 9/27/2010

WOW! That’s a powerful statement.

There is no question that John Paulson is a bull when it comes to residential real estate right now. Should we care what Mr. Paulson thinks? Should we listen to him? The answer to both questions is a resounding ‘YES’. Here are several reasons why.

Who is John Paulson?

Paulson is the person who made a fortune betting that the subprime mortgage mess would cause the the real estate market to collapse. He understands how the housing market works and knows when to buy and when to sell. What do others think of Paulson?

According to Forbes John Paulson is:

a multibillionaire hedge fund operator and the investment genius who made a killing going short subprime mortgages a few years ago.

According to the Wall Street Journal Paulson is:

a hedge fund tycoon who made his name, and a fortune, betting against subprime mortgages when no one else even knew what they were.

What did other financial players think of his statement?

The Wall Street Journal agrees with Paulson:

Ignore the critics. The odds have to be on his side…It isn’t just that home prices have fallen a long way. It’s also that, if you can get a mortgage, you are basically taking a reverse bet on the bond market. You could be a long-term borrower at fixed rates, instead of a long-term lender. Right now you can borrow for 30 years at around 4.3%. After the mortgage tax deduction, for some people the net effective interest rate is nearer to 3%. That’s going to prove an awesome deal if we see inflation again.

And Forbes said:

As this is the best time in 50 years to buy homes, Paulson advised his listeners to take 30 year mortgages to buy a home as “your debt and interest payments get locked in at record lows, while the price of your home will rise.”

TORONTO – Aug. 6, 2010 – Mary and Ron Ethier long believed a getaway home in the Florida sun would remain a retirement dream, but when a recent real estate turnaround opened the border to a growing flock of snowbirds, the couple suddenly saw an opportunity too tempting to pass up.

“We just felt with the prices that were happening down there, that it was out of our reach financially,” said Mary Ethier from her home in Pembroke, Ont. “But when their real estate market basically took a big hit and the Canadian dollar came up, we thought if we’re ever going to do it, now’s the time to get off our butts and go and do it.”

The couple, too busy with their lawn-care franchise to enjoy Ontario summers, toured homes in the Fort Myers, Fla., area in the fall of 2007 and made a lowball offer, expecting to negotiate, but instead found their deal accepted.

By January, they owned a condo in a gated community, a property foreclosed upon when the U.S. housing bubble burst and home prices began to plummet and many American homeowners realized they could no longer pay their mortgages.

The loonie has since risen to hover around parity while U.S. home prices have stagnated, creating new financial incentives for Canadians to act fast and scoop up American real estate deals.

“It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity for Canadians,” says Mark Dziedzic, a Canadian Realtor with Cross Border Realty and a snowbird himself.

The Sun Belt states of Texas, Arizona, California and Florida are favorites, while there are also deals to be had in Nevada and Georgia. The average price of a home in Phoenix, Ariz., is US$144,600, compared to $432,253 in Toronto.

“People are buying $40,000 to $50,000 condos in Phoenix right now. Condos (in Toronto) are selling for $400,000 to $500,000,” Dziedzic said. Taxes, condo fees and closing costs are also generally less expensive in the U.S., he added.

Prices in most U.S. regions have steadied after falling for three years, but a high number of foreclosures persist, lowering prices, especially in Florida and Nevada, said Bank of Montreal mortgage specialist Laura Parsons.

“This is the time to buy if you’re going to,” she said.

“I think you’ve got to look at this as a long-term investment because you’re getting such a deal. You’re going to have to hang on to it for a while,” and ride out any further downturns before the market picks up again, she said.

There is a fine balance between rushing to buy and waiting for lower prices. Economists predict the U.S. housing market will remain soft, but it’s futile to make decisions based on where a currency or a housing market is going.

“I don’t think you need to rush down and get a place, but the good stuff in the lower price range … those are moving. The good ones come up and they’re sold,” Dziedzic said.

Buying real estate in the U.S. is becoming easier for Canadians as more snowbirds snap up getaway homes. But experts caution that the buying process, which takes about three to four months, is a different beast.

© The Canadian Press 2010

ORLANDO, Fla. – May 24, 2010 – Sales of existing homes in Florida rose 27 percent in April, which means that sales activity has increased in the year-to-year comparison for 20 months, according to the latest housing data released by Florida Realtors®. Another positive sign: Last month’s statewide existing-home median price of $140,100 was 1 percent higher than the statewide median price in April 2009.

Existing home sales rose 27 percent last month with a total of 16,781 homes sold statewide compared to 13,244 homes sold in April 2009, according to Florida Realtors. Statewide existing home sales last month increased nearly 3 percent over statewide sales activity in March. Meanwhile, April’s statewide existing-home median price was 2.3 percent higher than March’s statewide existing-home median price of $137,000. It marks the second month in a row that the statewide existing-home median price has increased over the previous month’s median.

“Buyers responding to the federal homebuyer tax credit before it expired helped to boost home sales across Florida,” said 2010 Florida Realtors President Wendell Davis, a broker with Watson Realty Corp. in Jacksonville. “And buying conditions remain favorable, with a variety of housing options available in local markets at attractive and affordable prices. Plus, current mortgage interest rates are at historically low levels, which gives buyers more ‘bang’ for their buck.”

Florida Realtors also reported a 55 percent increase in statewide sales of existing condos in April compared to the previous year’s sales figure; statewide existing condo sales last month rose 2 percent over the total units sold in March. Though April’s statewide existing-condo median price of $103,600 was down 3 percent compared to the year-ago figure, it was 6.9 percent higher than March’s statewide existing-condo median price.

Seventeen of Florida’s metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) reported increased existing home sales in April while all but one MSA had higher condo sales. A majority of the state’s MSAs have reported increased sales for 22 consecutive months.

Florida’s median sales price for existing homes last month was $140,100; a year ago, it was $138,100 for a 1 percent gain. The median is the midpoint; half the homes sold for more, half for less.

Thenational median sales price for existing single-family homes in March 2010 was $170,700, up 0.6 percent from a year earlier, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). In California, the statewide median resales price was $301,790in March; in Massachusetts, it was $280,000; in Maryland, it was $235,785; and in New York, it was $209,900.

According to NAR’s latest outlook, two trends are influencing a broader stabilization of home prices in housing markets across the nation: months of increased sales activity and lower levels of inventory. “Foreclosures have been feeding into the inventory pipeline at a fairly steady pace and are being absorbed manageably,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “With home values stabilizing, a revival in homebuying confidence will likely help the housing market get back on its feet even as the tax credit impact disappears.”

In Florida’s year-to-year comparison for condos, 7,291 units sold statewide last month compared to 4,703 units in April 2009 for an increase of 55 percent. The statewide existing condo median sales price last month was $103,600; in April 2009 it was $107,200 for a 3 percent decrease. The national median existing condo price was $170,600 in March, according to NAR.

Interest rates for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.10 percent in April, up from the average rate of 4.81 percent during the same month a year earlier, according to Freddie Mac. Florida Realtors’ sales figures reflect closings, which typically occur 30 to 90 days after sales contracts are written.

Among the state’s smaller markets, the Panama City MSA reported a total of 128 homes sold in April compared to 108 homes a year earlier for a 19 percent increase. The market’s existing home median sales price last month was $160,000; a year earlier it was $156,800 for an increase of 2 percent. A total of 65 condos sold in the MSA in April compared to 53 units sold the same month a year earlier for an increase of 23 percent. The existing condo median price last month was $187,100; a year earlier, it was $172,900 for an 8 percent gain.

© 2010 Florida Realtors

To search for South Tampa Homes, click here.

RISMEDIA, April 26, 2010—If you are reading this, it means you’ve survived. Congratulations. You might be surprised to know you’re not alone.

According to the very encouraging results of RISMedia’s 22nd Annual Power Broker Survey, more than 1,200 real estate firms weighed in on their success in 2009, reporting a total $585,508,645,713 in sales volume. Although this total sales volume is down by more than $163 billion over 2008, overall transactions for 2009 have increased by more than 100,000. These numbers clearly reflect the increasing sales of distressed properties last year, a healthy step toward moving these properties off the market, reducing inventory and stabilizing prices.

So, while the market is still rife with troubles, such as short sales, foreclosures and underwater homeowners—and stands to be for the remainder of 2010—the positive signs cannot be denied and most agree that we’ve bottomed out and are beginning a slow climb back up.

2009: The Year in Review
“Last year was really rough,” said Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services President Earl Lee at the company’s annual sales convention last month. “Real estate professionals were knocked down and pushed around but their resilience is an inspiration to all of us.”

Resilience in 2009 was demonstrated by those who were willing to embrace market realities and reorganize their businesses accordingly. As Bill Plattos, executive vice president of First Team Real Estate in Southern California, reports, 2009 revealed signs of stabilization in his market and increased business for companies that planned properly.

“We tried to read the market correctly and see where it was going and we focused on short sales,” he explains. “Plus, in our larger areas (Orange County, Riverside, Long Beach, etc.), our offices seemed to be cycling through the downturn faster than others. We developed our business plan specifically for getting the most we could out of the market that was presented to us. We also made agent training and marketing priorities.”

Even brokers in some of the country’s hardest hit areas are looking at 2009 as a positive year. Rei Mesa, president and CEO of Prudential Florida Realty, for example, describes 2009 as “an excellent year”…relatively speaking.

“Our transactions for single-family homes were up 31% and our volume was equal to 2008, which is an indication that Florida has become a very affordable state to live in,” explains Mesa. “For our other family of services, our mortgage group had a 9% increase year-over-year in loans and our title company saw a 13% increase year-over-year in the number of closed transactions, so it was an excellent year in looking at transactions as well as our bottom line. We have exceeded expectations from our business plan, based on our right-pricing approach, which is finally starting to impact our bottom line now.”

“Looking back, we had a reasonable year,” reports Dick Schlott, chairman and CEO of Gloria Nilson GMAC Real Estate in New Jersey. “We sold more houses than the company sold in 2008, but the average sales price was lower, which marks a continuation of what the market has been like the past few years. Looking back on the past year, we are pleased with how 2009 turned out, but are concerned that a majority of the activity came about because of the extended and expanded stimulus package.”

Many Power Brokers agree that government-sponsored programs helped shore up sales in the latter half of 2009. According to Georgianna Finn, broker/owner of Coach Realtors in Long Island, New York, “2009 matured throughout the year exactly as expected. No one was holding out on a realistic expectation for a return to a robust market. The last quarter of the year brought a substantial increase in business and profitability to the company, which is an encouraging sign. The increase in business came about through the government programs kicking in. Sellers decided to deal with the market instead of waiting for a miraculous change to occur.”

Those brokers who held on in 2009 were also those who wielded the red pen, cutting expenses where necessary to ensure survival.

“The fourth quarter of 2008 and first quarter of 2009 were just awful,” reports Prudential CA/NV President & CEO Ed Krafchow. “After that, it started to pick back up. There has been a lot of effort on everyone’s behalf to keep things going. By July of 2009, we were stable. That comes from cutting budgets and reorganizing.”

Operating in the New Landscape
As in any severe storm, the landscape often changes permanently in the aftermath. The real estate landscape is no different.

“We started the decade with a boom followed by a precipitous drop,” explains Lee. “The depth and speed of this decline caught everyone off guard. We knew a correction was coming but the severity and speed was not expected. But there are now positive signs for the future: home prices are no longer in a free fall and if you have good credit, you can get a mortgage—which, by the way, was the way it was always supposed to be.”

“This is the third downturn I’ve been through,” says Frank McDowell, broker/owner of Star Real Estate in Southern California. “It’s also the biggest. You have to be frugal and try not to expand too quickly. In the end, you’ll just end up cutting costs anyway as the market changes. I see between now and June to be very active.”

Succeeding in today’s market means accepting the fact that the real estate business has changed. “Today’s agents need to accept and embrace the market changes and then turn these changes to their best interest,” says Mesa. “Our successful agents have taken on REO business and figured out the appropriate process for short sales; they aren’t taking overpriced listings, they are focusing their marketing on the Internet rather than print and utilizing our family of services.”

Power Brokers are wary, however, about declines in the market this year once government programs come to a close.

“If the tax credit is not extended and if interest rates go up, I do see a slowdown,” says McDowell. “Because of this, I urge all of our agents to understand that this could happen and to take advantage of all the opportunities that are currently in front of them.”

“Once the stimulus package ends, we hope to see a pick-up in confidence in our particular market,” says Schlott. “After the stimulus package is abated, we anticipate that there will still be people buying and moving but at a more steady rate and within a higher price range over first-time buyers. As 2010 continues, we are forecasting an uptick in activity within our real estate market as well as stabilization within pricing. We are confident enough that things are going to continue to move in the right direction that we are opening two new offices in adjacent markets where we hope to get a piece of the market share.”

Planning for a Better Year, a Better Future
Like Schlott, savvy Power Brokers are well steeped in the realities of the new marketplace and honing their firms’ ability to make the most of the current and future real estate environment.

“We are continuing our business plan and focusing on short sales,” says Plattos. “We have learned and tackled every single point in short sales. In turn, our results are very good—85%-90% of the short sales close. In reading the market, it seems like the equity buyer and seller is coming back. The people who have owned a home and have a bit of equity have the opportunity to move up.”

“I don’t think the consumer confidence level has risen enough to stimulate the market. Nonetheless, well-run companies that are finely trimmed with a professional and hardworking sales force are going to be able to make it in this market,” says Finn.

Lessons learned from the current marketplace will serve Power Brokers well into the future.

“One lesson learned is to be careful of cost structure,” advises Krafchow. “Number two, if you’re not investing in the brokerage of the future you will get left behind. Number three, there’s this new generation of agents that have me fairly optimistic. I see Generations X and Y in this business and they have totally different behaviors and expectations.”

According to Lee, pent-up demand and low levels of building will soon result in reduced inventory.

“If history is any guide, the housing markets will rebound in advance of the labor markets and will help spark economic recovery,” says Lee. “Real estate is the locomotive that pulls the economy along. The biggest successes come out of the toughest times. You have choices. Choices you make will determine your destiny.”

As Prudential Americana CEO & Owner, Mark Stark says, the biggest lesson to walk away with for the future is to expect the unexpected.

“The things you think can never happen can happen,” explains Stark, whose company is based in Las Vegas. “While we couldn’t have planned for most of what has happened within the market recently, we have stayed ahead of the market. We haven’t lied to ourselves about what is happening—instead, we have been realistic and moved forward aggressively and quickly in order to protect our organization in the long term. No matter what happened within our marketplace, we were always prepared for it.”

“Even though there was a plethora of bad news, buying and selling of homes continues because families that couldn’t buy or sell over the last four years are able to now because of the low prices and interest rates,” says Schlott. “The market is certainly slower than it was four to five years ago, but we are entering the recovery phase now. While it is going to take a long time for prices to fully recover, this recovery period will bring prices back to 2003 levels and people are beginning to realize that now is an incredible time to buy or sell a home.”

- Stephanie Andre and Paige Tepping contributed to this article.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

Government urges short sales, but experts aren’t sure they will help

PHILADELPHIA – March 12, 2010 – With the highly touted federal mortgage-modification program falling short of its target numbers, the government has looked into alternatives to foreclosure and come up with a possible, though not original, solution: The short sale, a transaction in which the lender accepts less than the balance owed on the mortgage.

Beginning April 5, under new Treasury Department rules, short sales will be presented as the potential next step for homeowners who are rejected by or fail to make the grade for the federal Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).

RealtyTrac chief economist Rick Sharga suggested that offering the short-sale program is the administration’s acknowledgment that its current mortgage-modification effort “can’t solve the foreclosure problem by itself.”

Kevin Gillen, vice president of Econsult of Philadelphia, said there was both statistical and anecdotal evidence that lenders have been holding off on foreclosure proceedings. “No doubt that part of this is due to staff shortages relative to the volume of delinquencies, but it’s also due to uncertainty over near-term government policy,” he said.

Sharga sees positive elements in the new guidelines: Both homeowners and mortgage servicers will have financial incentive to participate in short sales; there are limited payouts for second lienholders, “and paperwork is standardized, which makes it easier for everyone to comply.”

The new Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative program will run until Dec. 31, 2012. Among its provisions:

• The lender must offer a short sale in writing to the borrower within 30 days after the borrower either is ruled ineligible for mortgage modification under the HAMP program or has been ruled unable to sustain payments under a trial plan.

• A borrower may receive up to $1,500 to assist with relocation expenses.

• Incentives of $1,000 will be offered to lenders for each completed short sale. For each deed in lieu of foreclosure, in which the borrower voluntarily transfers the property to the lender, $1,000 will be paid to the lender.

• A lender with a second lien on the property will get up to $3,000 of the short-sale proceeds, or can pursue a short sale outside the program if it doesn’t agree to share.

• The lender will not be permitted to reduce the real estate agent’s commission after an offer on a property has been received.

Currently, short sales don’t make up a big piece of the real estate market, either regionally or nationwide, for a variety of reasons. One is they tend to be difficult and time-consuming.

“I handled a short sale of a condo in Bensalem (Pa.) that took a year,” said real estate broker Christopher J. Artur. Typically, there is “so much aggravation and red tape involved that some buyers get so fed up they walk away.”

Nationally, just 14 percent of all existing-home transactions in January were short sales, the National Association of Realtors says. In the Philadelphia region, they made up 6.9 percent of total homes for sale at the end of January, said Art Herling, regional vice president at Long & Foster Real Estate.

“I call short sales ‘organized chaos,’ “ said Noelle Barbone, office manager of Weichert Realtors’ Media office. Each lender works short sales differently, “at their own pace, and it depends on how behind (the homeowners) are on mortgage payments, if the house is worth less than they owe, and whether or not foreclosure paperwork has been filed.”

The new program is unlikely to make short sales easier, even as an alternative to foreclosure. “What one needs in a short sale is time,” Barbone said.

But these days, as buyers race to meet the April 30 agreement-of-sale deadline for the federal tax credit, time is money.

“I had first-time buyers this weekend with 20 percent down, and we found two houses they liked,” said Cheryl Miller of Long & Foster’s Blue Bell office. Both were short sales, however, and neither the seller nor the agent could give a definite timeline for even seeing an executed agreement of sale, she said.

“Timing is pretty critical for the first-time buyer, and viable houses that are short sales are remaining unsold” as a result, Miller said.

Sharga doesn’t think the new short-sale program will be the answer the government seeks. “While we’ll likely see an increase in the number of short sales, I doubt that the reality will live up to the hype.”

Copyright © 2010 The Philadelphia Inquirer; distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. All rights reserved.

Lots of bargains? Not so, Fla. homebuyers say

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Feb. 12, 2010 – Think there are all kinds of crazy deals to be had in today’s real estate market?

That’s what 31-year-old Jason Bellak thought, too – a year ago. He’s been searching that long for something in the $150,000 price range in Palm Beach County. Short sale, condo, townhouse, foreclosure – he’s looked at them all, made offers on several, but is still living with his parents in Royal Palm Beach.

Despite a perception that three-bedroom, two-bath beauties with granite countertops and good schools can be yours for a song – or at least for 20 percent down – it’s not a market reality, say frustrated homebuyers and their Realtors.

Cash investors, sluggish banks and thorny financing are limiting the options for your average homebuyer, who, by the way, is sick of hearing, “It’s a buyers’ market.”

“I was like most people, thinking there were a lot of deals out there,” Bellak said. “But it quickly became apparent that it wasn’t going to be such an easy process.”

Competition is highest now in the $150,000 to $250,000 price range, said market analyst Jack McCabe of McCabe Research and Consulting in Deerfield Beach.

The median single-family home in Palm Beach County sold for $238,000 in January – 9 percent higher than in 2009, according to the Realtors Association of the Palm Beaches. Inventory in January was down to eight months, less than half of what it was in January 2009.

“Most people still think we’re in this terrible market, but the inventory tells a different story,” said Realtor Scott Smith, who has clients struggling to find homes in the Jupiter and Palm Beach Gardens area even though they’re willing to spend between $350,000 and $400,000.

Bellak can’t even recall the details of all the offers he’s made on homes in the past year. He bid on a three-bedroom townhouse in foreclosure but lost. He made an offer on a short sale condo – meeting the $141,000 asking price – waited three months, but then couldn’t get financing because the homeowners association had too many delinquent accounts.

In most cases, for a buyer to get a Federal Housing Administration-backed loan for a condominium, no more than 15 percent of the units can be more than 30 days past due on association fees.

Now Bellak has his heart set on a two-bedroom Jupiter townhouse.

“I think if this one doesn’t go through, I may hold off for now,” said Bellak, who has been working with Realtor Craig Fialkowski of Herman Group Real Estate in Palm Beach Gardens.

Realtors say part of the problem is that people hear the hype about the down market and expect to find a steal in a great neighborhood.

Last year, more than 500,000 Florida homes received some type of foreclosure notice, according to the Irvine, Calif.-based company RealtyTrac.

But while foreclosures are usually priced low, they’re not always good deals. They could be tagged with liens, have missing appliances or be in general disrepair.

“It’s not like everything just became half-price overnight with no repercussions,” said Realtor Shannon Brink of Re/Max Prestige Realty in downtown West Palm Beach. “Plus, many banks still sell homes off at auction or to capital investors, so not everything even hits the open market.”

Crystal Paul and her fiancé, Antonio Hester, both 25, have been working with Brink since December to find a home for about $150,000.

They’ve looked at a dozen or more properties and have made some offers. But they’ve lost out to investors with ready cash, which is more attractive to banks.

“You find a house you think you can live in, but then you lose it,” Paul said. “The cash investors have the upper hand and here we are just trying to get started.”

When a short sale off Military Trail popped up last week for $139,900, Paul and Hester made an offer that the homeowner accepted. But he owes more than $230,000 on the house, and in the end it’s up to the bank to OK the sale.

Brink said banks will sometimes set a low asking price on a short sale to attract buyers, but with no plans to actually settle for that price.

While short sales have traditionally taken months to settle, new federal guidelines that go into effect in April require banks to respond to short sale offers within 10 days.

More good news for buyers this year is the prediction of an increase in foreclosures that could further reduce prices.

G. Stacy Sirmans, a real estate professor at Florida State University, said the market hasn’t hit bottom and won’t for at least another year.

“It’s definitely a buyers’ market,” Sirmans said.

Copyright © 2010 The Palm Beach Post, Fla., Kimberly Miller. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

South Tampa homes continue to be available at deeply discounted prices. Whether you are a first time homebuyer, or and investor looking for either a flip or a buy, rent and hold strategy, there are plenty of homes on the market to suit your goals. The first time homebuyer tax credit of $8000 along with the step up credit of $6500 are both still available, but time is running out on you. Short Sales are virtually out of the question if you are trying to capitalize on the credits unless they are bank approved. Bank owned foreclosures are great to go after, but the competition to purchase these properties is getting fierce, and selling prices are going above asking price in many situations.

Here are a few tips to assist you in making sure you are doing everything to capitalize on the current deals available:

• Utilize a full time Realtor with a focus on your area, i.e. South Tampa
• Use a Realtor that has experience with short sales and foreclosures
• Get yourself pre-approved so you are ready to submit your offer when the time is right

Hopefully these tips will help you in finding the perfect home and capitalizing on the credits available. With interest rates as low as they’ve been in 50 years, prices being as low as they’ve been in 5+ years and the tax credits available, we are truly witnessing the perfect storm to purchase a home, especially in South Tampa. If you would like to view South Tampa homes for sale, please visit my website at www.SouthTampaSpecialist.com.