Florida Real Estate, Tourism and Immigration News

U.K. house prices unexpectedly jumped in May by the most since 2002, adding to signs the worst of the recession is over, a report by Halifax showed.

Home values rose 2.6 percent from the previous month to an average of £158,565 pounds ($260,000), the division of Lloyds Banking Group Plc said in a statement in London today. Economists predicted a 1 percent drop, according to the median of 12 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey. From a year earlier, prices fell 13.7 percent.

Services industries expanded for the first time in a year in May and consumer confidence rose to a six-month high, reports yesterday showed, in further evidence the economy is emerging from its slump. The Bank of England said today it will continue spending 125 billion pounds in newly printed money to bolster lending as it kept the benchmark interest rate at a record low.

“The Halifax data are bound to heighten speculation that the housing market is turning,” said Howard Archer, chief European economist at IHS Global Insight in London. “We believe that the pickup in actual house purchases is likely to be gradual and fitful for some time to come given ongoing tight credit conditions.”

The monthly increase was the first in four months, Halifax said. In the three months through May, prices fell 16.3 percent from a year earlier.

“There are some tentative indications of a possible stabilization in activity, albeit at a low level,” Nitesh Patel, an economist at Halifax, said in the statement. “House sales remain substantially below their long term average and market conditions are expected to remain difficult.”

The Bank of England today left the benchmark interest rate at 0.5 percent at its monthly decision and said they would keep the total amount of money that they want to spend on assets to aid the economy under review.

Davenport, Florida…

A troubled developer in the Four Corners area near Walt Disney World, sued by British investors after the vacation homes for which they paid thousands weren’t built, has now sought protection from its creditors in bankruptcy court.

Tierra del Sol Resort Inc. filed a Chapter 11 petition this week in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Orlando, seeking a chance to restructure so it can resume construction and pay off its debts. The company owes creditors a total of $184 million.

“The goal is to restart construction,” said bankruptcy lawyer Scott Shuker, who filed the petition for the Orlando-based resort company.

Construction ceased last summer at Tierra del Sol, a development that was supposed to total nearly 1,000 condominium units and town homes off U.S. Highway 27, just west of the ChampionsGate resort. The developer ran out of money.

Tierra del Sol officials last year blamed the cash shortfall on the housing slump, an expansion of the resort’s water park, and the costs of filing plan modifications with Polk County government.

Once construction restarts, Shuker said, the company would finish building the units and sell them to repay creditors. If it can secure a loan, the company intends to build the 100,000-square-foot clubhouse, with restaurants and shops, featured in its original plans. Shuker said the resort would be fully built in three to four years.

So far, only 96 town houses have been completed and prepared for occupancy. Of the 972 units planned for the site, 370 have purchase contracts but haven’t gone to closings.

The project’s first phase — five Mediterranean-style buildings with six floors and 1,200- to 1,500-square-foot condos — was initially to be ready by the summer of 2006. When it missed that deadline, Tierra del Sol started to send buyers letters asking for contract extensions — and more money to finish the construction.

“They started calling and trying to get me to sign another contract and pay double the price,” said Tom DeNapoli, who said he paid a $27,000 deposit for a four-bedroom town house supposed to be completed in 2005. He asked for his deposit back but never got it.

“It certainly negated any other investment opportunity I might have had,” said DeNapoli, 46, who lives in Easton, Mass.

If the project doesn’t get back on its feet, Shuker said, those who paid deposits will not get their money back.

David and Sandra Clayton of the Netherlands are among the would-be owners who reached a settlement with the company late last year after filing a lawsuit. They have received about $100,000 so far of $330,000 they’re owed, said their lawyer, Matt Firestone.

“It’s not good for my clients,” Firestone said of the bankruptcy filing. “As unsecured creditors, they stand to obtain little if any of these funds from the bankruptcy.”

The Chapter 11 filing protects the company for now from current and future lawsuits. Affiliated companies that are part of the bankruptcy filing include TDS Amenities Inc., TDS Clubhouse Inc., Tierra del Sol Owners Association Inc., Costa Blanca I Real Estate LLC, Costa Blanca II Real Estate LLC and Costa Blanca III Real Estate LLC.

If the homes eventually are built and sold at their listed prices, Tierra del Sol’s assets would total $188 million, Shuker said. The company’s largest creditors include banks, investment groups and numerous home buyers, many of whom paid deposits of more than $100,000. Many of those disappointed buyers are from the United Kingdom, where the company had heavily advertised the resort. The development also drew buyers from throughout the U.S. and Latin America, including Colombia and Venezuela.

Kennedy Funding of New York and Stanford Fund of California are owed $28 million each. Tierra del Sol Resort’s parent company, American Leisure Group, reportedly received loans from R.Allen Stanford, a Texas financier accused of an $8 billion fraud by federal regulators.

Tierra del Sol is actually a subsidiary of American Leisure Holdings Inc., which is owned by American Leisure Real Estate Group.

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According to a recent article on Forbes.com, buyers are returning to the British property market.

Low interest rates, great property prices and a general feeling that the bottom is reached or very close, is motivating action before sales prices start to climb.

In a recent survey of the sector, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said buyer enthusiasm increased for the fifth straight month in March, with London picking up particularly sharply.

This pickup in inquiries is feeding through into sales, RICS said, even though they remain at historically low levels.

“Buyer interest is starting to gain real momentum but will remain frustrated while mortgage finance is scarce,” said Ian Perry, a spokesman at RICS.

The RICS survey adds to the evidence that the British housing market may have bottomed out. The Nationwide building society said house prices actually increased in March for the first time since October 2007, while the Bank of England revealed that the number of mortgages approved in February rose by 19 percent to their highest level since May 2008.

Read the full article here…

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2009/04/15/ap6291961.html

UPDATED APRIL 16TH 2009 – THIS PROPERTY HAS SOLD.

DEAL OF THE WEEK 

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Economic Recovery in the UK beggining the end of this year?

According to a recent article in the Financial Times the UK economy should begin to recover by the end of this year. The huge monetary and fiscal provisions, combined with sharp falls in commodity prices, will help boost household and business spending, a senior Bank of England official predicted.

Spencer Dale, chief economist at the Bank and a member of its rate-setting monetary policy committee, made the remarks at a meeting of the Association of British Insurers, a group whose members have been hit by the sharp fall in stock markets and the crunch in credit markets.

“As we go through 2009, I believe it is most likely that the pace at which output is contracting will ease and that we will see some signs of recovery by around the turn of this year,” Mr Dale told the group.

He went on to say that the causes of the current recession were different from previous recessions and that its actual path was not known. “There is huge uncertainty about the precise form and timing of the recovery and so this central path should be treated with a healthy degree of scepticism.”

Mr Dale said the Bank would keep in place its unconventional exercise of monetary policy (known as quantitative easing) until it became apparent that it had succeeded in bringing inflation back to its annual 2 per cent medium-term target.

Is American misfortune British Luck?  It would seem so at the moment – the perfect storm has combined to allow British investors interested in Florida real estate an incredible opportunity.  A weak dollar, a crash in Orlando home prices and rapidly increasing oil prices make Orlando real estate purchases a bargain for foreign investors.  For some Orlando real estate sellers, foreign investment is a welcome phenomena.  This injection of overseas buyers is helping to keep many of the Florida markets alive and will ultimately aid in tipping the US real estate scales back to health.

Lee Weaver of British Homes Group was recently interviewed by Hot Property Overseas.  Weaver notes that 2008 business at British Homes Group is up threefold as compared to the last half of 07 thanks to British investors.  His advice for UK real estate buyers?

"One thing UK buyers of US property should do is familiarize themselves with the buying process, which is quite different from the UK’s solicitor-based one."

Weaver notes some basic differences:

• Typically you don’t need a solicitor, instead you have a closing or title company
• The American MLS System is different from the British system in that agents share the data and split commissions acting as an incentive to show prospective buyers a wider range of properties
• The lending culture in the US is different, home loans bought through mortgage brokers often get sold to other financial institutions – often times you don’t know who owns the loan

Lee believes the window of opportunity is still open but narrowing – those who have been thinking about getting into the Florida market should not wait to investigate!

Call British Homes Group Today for help with purchasing or financing your Orlando area dream home!

Orlando Area MLS Search 

Recently four representatives from the Florida Association of Realtors visited London with a message for British second home buyers – the Florida market has some incredible real estate steals.  According to Tallahasse-based Florida Association of Realtors Vice President, John Sebree,

"The British are extremely important to the Florida real estate market.  We’re here to tell people that prices in Florida have never been lower and that there’s a huge inventory to choose from."

Right now Britons have very strong buying power with the offset of the pound to weak dollar.  This is the second British trade mission initiated by Florida Realtors in the last four months.  They are meeting with media outlets to pitch Florida real estate stories as well as trying to forge trade and referral relationships with British real estate companies.  The group is also focused on working with the US government to help loosen visa restrictions prohibiting foreigners from living in Florida second homes for longer than six months of the year.

Some Brits are concerned about the high property taxes in Florida, but as compared to several other US states the taxes are relatively low.  Insurance is also higher than anyone would like, but has stabilized in past years.   

According to the group, "buying in Florida is pretty much a no-brainer"! 

We agree!  The Orlando real estate team at British Homes Group is unique in that they employ British and American professionals who are experts in both UK and US property purchase and financing procedures.  Through co-brokerage arrangements and the availability of the Florida Property Multilist, they have access to one of the largest property databases available in Florida.

The British home loan division can also help the British home buyer with access to fixed and flexible mortgages in a variety of currencies.

Call British Homes Group Today for help with purchasing or financing your Orlando area dream home!

Orlando Area MLS Search 

Despite the many misconceptions attached to living in Florida, prospective buyers from Britain still find Florida property a hot commodity!  Fun in the Sunshine State, especially the Orlando marketplace is key for many British second home buyers.  Many believe the free fall in the Orlando real estate market has stopped and stabilization is starting to occur.  In just the last two months the Florida market as a whole has shown vast signs of improvement.  Now is one of the best times for British second home buyers to think about getting into the Orlando real estate market.

According to a 2007 National Association of Realtors survey, 1/3 of all licensed Realtors have worked with an overseas buyer.  Of these overseas buyers, 1/3 were from Europe with 12% being British.  Lots of Brits buying second homes look to Florida as an investment in their future.  The sunny lifestyle meets their needs and the stable tourism economy typically ensures the demand for Orlando FL rental properties.  So those homes have the potential to generate income from short term rentals while British families are not using them.

Due to many subtle differences in British real estate process versus US real estate transactions, it is imperative British buyers work with Realtors and lenders well seasoned in both markets.  The Orlando real estate team at British Homes Group is unique in that they employ British and American professionals who are experts in both UK and US property purchase and financing procedures.  Through co-brokerage arrangements and the availability of the Florida Property Multilist, they have access to one of the largest property databases available in Florida.

The British home loan division can also help the British home buyer with access to fixed and flexible mortgages in a variety of currencies.

Call British Homes Group Today for help with purchasing or financing your Orlando area dream home!

Orlando Area MLS Search 

While the Florida market teems with an oversupply of homes and the pound remains strong, there has never been a better opportunity for UK real estate buyers to snatch up bargain Orlando dream homes.  Our team at British Homes Group has helped hundreds of British families find vacation homes in Florida over the years.  With the pound at a 26 year high, the Brits have a significant advantage over US buyers who are not only faced with trying to afford a home but also with a difficult mortgage market.  Developers in Florida notoriously over-built, which means that there is a ton of inventory up for grabs.  The economy remains strong with healthy job growth, so this is a great area to invest in as the market will likely level when the inventory wanes.  For now, sellers are highly motivated are bargains are available for the savvy investor. 

If buying real estate overseas seems a daunting process, don’t worry – our team at British Homes Group can help.  We guarantee impartial, professional advice on the current Florida market, on sales and mortgages and much more.  Our goal is to provide the UK real estate buyer with a completely hassle free transaction. 

Our Orlando real estate team is unique in that we have both British and American professionals who are experts in both UK and US property purchase and financing procedures.  Through co-brokerage arrangements and the availability of the Florida Property Multilist, We have access to one of the largest property databases available in Florida.

Our British home loan division can also help the British home buyer with access to fixed and flexible mortgages in a variety of currencies.

Still unconvinced?  To give you an idea of the available Orlando real estate bargains – you could be the new owner of a 5 bedroom, 3 bath fully furnished Clear Creek home with a pool just minutes from Disney for only $225,000.  Now that’s the real deal.

Call British Homes Group Today for help with purchasing or financing your Orlando area dream home!

Orlando Area MLS Search