From Today’s Orlando Sentinel:

Mortgage meltdown

With Orlando No. 3 in nation in underwater mortgages, homeowners ponder leaving.

Mark and Susan Stone are weighing a decision being echoed across Central Florida: Should we stay in a home worth less than the mortgage – or walk away?

Orlando now leads Florida and most of the nation for underwater mortgages, according to a report released last week by CoreLogic Inc. Only Las Vegas and Phoenix surpass it. The California-based researchers determined that 55 percent, or 285,004, of the area’s mortgaged homes are worth less than their outstanding mortgage.

Industry experts describe the properties as being a “shadow inventory” of bank-repossessed properties and mortgages facing foreclosure.

Central Florida’s home-loan burdens come as no surprise in a metro area where housing stock has lost half its value in three years. Not only did buyers who purchased during the peak get stuck with upside-down mortgages, so did homeowners who refinanced based on values before the housing bubble burst starting in mid-2007.

That has led to more people walking away from their homes. But that decision comes with risks. The homeowner’s credit can be marred, and it could raise thorny ethical questions.

The terms “short sale,” “negative equity” and “strategic default” weren’t part of the Stones’ vocabulary a few years ago. Now, the Wall Streetish terms have become the creaking rafters of their lives.

“That was my dream kitchen. But it’s just a kitchen,” said Susan Stone, who lives in the home with her husband and two sons, ages 7 and 3. “Both kids were there since they were born. It’s all they’ve ever known. … We just want an affordable payment, or they [the bank] can have the house. It will sit vacant for who knows how long.”

Last week, the scales seemed to tip slightly toward struggling owners sticking it out in their homes. Existing-home sales prices for Orlando were up for the third straight month, with a median of $115,000, and foreclosure filings were down by a quarter from the previous month and the previous year.

It wasn’t all good news, though. Though the legal foreclosure filings for homeowners just entering the process had fallen, the pipeline of houses in the latter phases of foreclosure – when banks have taken over properties – had swollen for the fifth straight month.

“The fundamental issue still facing the fragile housing market is that backup of underwater mortgages,” said Daren Blomquist, spokesman for RealtyTrac, which researches foreclosure activity. “In our minds, those are definitely much more susceptible to foreclosure.”

The path leading to the Stones’ possible abandonment of their longtime canal-front home in the Isle of Catalina community in south Orlando took several sharp turns in recent years.

Mark Stone, 42, bought the home 12 years ago for $93,000. Then, about two years later, he took equity out of the appreciating house to open a bar and grill, but the 2004 hurricanes closed the adjacent hotel for six months, and the bar and grill was a casualty. The Stones then took out more equity to launch a vending business, which also failed.

The couple rallied, sometimes working back-to-back jobs, and refinanced their debt in 2006, but their adjustable-rate mortgage soon climbed to $1,850 a month. Even when Deutsche Bank agreed to modify the payments to $1,250 a month, they were slapped with higher premiums for flood insurance.

The payments became insurmountable, even when they cut their cable and necessities such as prescription medications. Finally, in January, their lender denied them any chance at a permanent mortgage modification.

Bottom line: They owe about $208,000, and the midcentury, three-bedroom house is listed for sale at $229,000, which would cover the debt plus real-estate costs. But even with the boat dock and granite counters, the house is unlikely to fetch that price because similar houses in the neighborhood have sold for about $160,000.

“Basically you have to look at it like a business would,” said Susan Stone, 37, a longtime corrections officer. A corporation would not continue to continue pay top dollar for an asset that had lost half its value, she added.

She has her list of pros and cons of walking away.

The case for walking away: She said the house is likely worth about $40,000 less than they owe on it. If they stayed, they would have to face some big-ticket expenses, such as a new roof. After the lender denied them a mortgage modification in January, they stopped making payments, and she estimated they could soon save $10,000 for a down payment on another house.

The case for staying: She said they would lose more than $30,000 they sank into the house for mold remediation and repairs after the 2004 hurricanes. And, most importantly, their credit would be damaged. But Stone noted that the house is in her husband’s name and her credit is intact, allowing her to buy their next house.

Rocky Stubbs, vice president of Homeownership Preservation for JP Morgan Chase, said homeowners need to explore their options before they undertake what he called a noncontested foreclosure. Homeowners who just walk away are still responsible for paying the debt, the lender’s legal bills, unpaid taxes and insurance.

“You start to traverse the ethical obligations of someone trying to keep, to the best of their ability, the terms of the contract,” said Stubbs, who oversees the lender’s Florida market, including two offices in Orlando. “But at the end of the day, there are cases when it’s ultimately unaffordable.”

Homeowners could pursue a short sale, in which the lender agrees to sell the property for less than the mortgage. The owner may still have to pay the debt, but that’s often negotiable. Another option is a deed in lieu of foreclosure. That alternative can relinquish borrowers from debt and allow them to avoid the public notoriety of a foreclosure.

Both of those options save lenders the time and expense of repossessing a house. Another course allows borrowers to lease their house from the lender, at market rates, after they surrendered the deed to the lender.

Mentally, Stone said, she’s ready to move on. She said they could purchase a house with lower monthly payments, higher-rated schools, fewer maintenance costs and closer to family in east Orlando. She said her family would miss living on the canal that feeds Clear Lake.

But what’s the point of living on the water, she asked, when you can’t afford any of the toys to enjoy it?

 
Please let us know if we or any of our Advisory Panel can assist you with any legal, sales, financial or other Florida property related advice.

We have, as you may know, a highly active Orlando-based Estate Agency specialising is assisting UK home owners in Florida.

Sincerely,

Bill Cowie  President

www.BritishHomesGroup.com

Kissimmee Office: 407 396 9914

November showed some improvement over October and the preceeding months – a sign of a market which is stabilising and possible on the grow in the near future.

The average mortgage rate was down by over 1/8 of a percent over September and October levels, Inventory had also fallen along with the number of New Listings – which was the most surprising news as the number was the lowest for the year – lowever than the previous Low in December 2006! The new listings of 3610 was nearly half the number in July of 6426.

This is all very exciting news. The property market in Florida represents a great investment as owners can benefit from year round sunshine as well as the great attractions and amenities available to them.

If you are thinking about buying your own slice of the Sunshine State then please get in touch with us today – with the Pound and Euro trading so strong against the weak US Dollar it is no wonder that overseas investors are seeking to buy up Florida property.

This product has had some coverage in the press recently as a really fantastic flexbile product for purchasing a home in Florida.

With the current strength of the Pound against the Dollar there is no question that having a Sterling Mortgage on a Florida property is definately something to consider.

With GE Money suspending lending in Florida the Multi-Currency product offers a great alternative for having a mortgage in Sterling, recent coverage in the press has been extensive.

Please get in touch if you would like more information on the Multi-Currency product if you are thinking of financing or refinancing a Florida property – use our online contact form below or call us on our freephone UK number 0800 096 5989.

Maybe it is a Florida home you are after? Or Florida mortgage? We can assist with both! We have a dedicated team of Real Estate professionals waiting to serve you and find you that perfect Florida home of your dreams. Maybe you have been fed up by the rained out British Summer this year? Or have seen the gorgeous property for sale on A Place in the Sun or Real Estate TV? – Which we have been featured on!

What ever your reason, Florida is a fantastic place to invest, with a high quality of life coupled with cheap property, gorgeous weather and the cheapest dollar in over a quarter of a century it really is the place to be!

However… you ask.. how can I afford it? Well, our team of Mortgage Brokers cajn look at the options right for you, whether what we are most famous for, the British Sterling mortgage (where your repayments are in pounds) or a US Dollar mortgage or even a Multi-Currency Mortgage they can look at what is right for you and quote you on the product you like best all at no obligation.

Wait! The system is unlike the Uk in that Realtor’s (Estate Agents as they are called in the UK) here have access to all the properties in the area, so it saves you doing the leg work and takes out the need to shop around and if you chose one of our agents to look for property for you they are acting in your interest! Similarly, with the finance side our brokers are experienced in a range of products and have a choice of lenders to look for products, again taking out the need to shop around and allowing you to concentrate on the more important things in life…like what day to go to Disney or the beach!

• GE Money Home Lending sees Florida sales double year-on-year as UK buyers remain focused on the Florida market
• Investors surge into the market place as the pound recently reached a 26-year high against the dollar
• Current UK investors urged to looks at the long-term investment of their properties and advised against selling in the current market place

Many property investors looking towards buying a home in Florida have been warned off the market place in recent months. However, when looking at the Florida market place, it still gave a solid performance last year with house price inflation sitting at 9.5%.

Coupled with a fantastic Sterling Vs. Dollar rate which is the highest in over a quarter of a century, it makes Florida very attractive indeed!

GE Money Home Lending offers UK citizens the opportunity to secure a sterling mortgage on a property in Florida, enabling many to secure their holiday home or investment property – based upon the Bank of England base rate and a system which they are familiar with.

Read the full press release on British Homes Group’s main website

How do you find blogs about things you like?

Well a blog search engine of course!! Technorati is THE search engine of the blog world, amongst others. Google also has an advanced blog search engine built in to its existing engine.
Blogging is all about updated content..so when a blog is not updated it probably isnt full of content that you will read – however our blog here for instance is updated pretty much on a daily basis with points of interest for you!

There are more than 90 million blogs on the internet so there is going to be something that you like on there!

The Orlando Sentinel Has a great guide (another one in the How 2.. series)
 check it out.

Happy Blogging!

The park has delivered a competitive message to its rivals, Disney and Universal stating that SeaWorld has the best kids attractions! Yesterday the three new experiences for kids opened their gates. They are as follows:

The Sea Carosel, The Flying Fiddler drop ride and the Ocean Commotion rocking boat ride. Shamu’s Happy Harbor has grown since 2005 and now incorporates a kids rollercoaster and the teacups to name just two!! This is coupled with the company going back to its roots, being a family theme park not just parents and teens. Everyone can come and have fun.

At the Kennedy Space center however more gentile rides are not to be found as the new Shuttle Experience ride blasts off!!

This new ride simulates a real shuttle launch in the most authentic way yet. The "Crew" experience the sensation of 3G’s – through various trickery including the seat pressure changing as well as subtle seat movements. At the moment the fastest thrill ride in the area is Mission: Space in Epcot which has passengers experiencing 1.5G’s….

The NASA ride will surely create a following as the passengers are "blasted into space" they hear, feel and see things as if they are travelling into space. The rocket boosters jettison and the main engine cuts off where there is decelerration from 3G’s to zero gravity as the ship glides in to the black abyss. What an awe inspiring sight. The ride finished with the revealing of the Earth through "open cargo doors" above as if the Shuttle is upside down orbiting the earth which moves overhead.

What a fantastic 5 minute ride, I would love to try it!

See what Central Florida has to offer!!! Own your own home here and become an explorer of all the area has to see and do! Contact Us today!

NEW FEATURE OF THE BRITISH HOMES GROUP BLOG!

Below the icons on the left navigation bay there are a group of links, British Homes Group Website, MLS Search etc etc. However there is a new addition.. loan calculator! This new page link will allow you to check the affordability of your dream Florida property!

You can also click here to access it:

Please check it out…

http://sunnybrits.com/

If you are looking for a home in the sunshine state or maybe thinking of just refinancing your Florida property then please give us a call from the UK,
Freephone: 0800 096 5989