Florida Real Estate, Tourism and Immigration News

The article discusses how the weak dollar against the strong pound coupled with a great buyers market in the state make it a great place to invest, providing you are careful.

The article details many areas from Daytona Beach to Miami Beach where your pound will give you more bucks and the market will bake that buck go further. The top end of the market doesn’t seem to be suffering as the article states that the super luxury homes are popular with Wall Street’s finest as their bonuses allow them to afford such property.

The overall article talks about the different areas which one could buy in the states and take advantage of the current situation and details comments from one Brit owner (Martin Harwood – who bought in Tuscana in Champions Gate) who said “As a family with children, it’s a much better choice than Spain. The all-year weather, countless attractions and shops keep you occupied and we believe the long-term investment potential is still good.”

Vacation home sales rose by 4.7% in Florida in 2006 to a record 1.07million! It seems that although there was a small decrease in the Median Price sales remained strong. Brits who lead the pack in Foreign National investment were scared off by Hurricane Katrina which hit south Florida and then went on to flood New Orleans in Louisiana, in 2005. However things are picking up nicely, people are choosing to own their own vacation home as a lifestyle choice as the demographics of the USA and the UK are changing, the wartime baby boomer are growing older and looking for a nice retirement nest egg.

After all a vacation property in the Orlando area covers most bases well, its a nice lifestyle choice (you can have your vacations there) it is a good capital investment as well as providing income through rental.

The Orlando Sentinel Reported 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:

If you are looking for home in Florida then please give us a call:
Freephone from the UK: 0800 096 5989 or Toll-Free from the USA: 1-888-407-2748

Whilst on your inspection trip looking at Florida property..say you fall ill…have a spout of a chesty cough or get an infected bite. What do you do?

Well..interestingly even with travel insurance it is difficult to get affordable and quick healthcare. – Often medical providers will not accept UK travel insurance unless they have a billing address in the US (Don’t count on this even making a difference either…) so what is the alternative? cough up hundreds of $$$ for a routine visit to get some medication and then having to wait until you get back to the UK and claim against your insurance and wait etc. etc. Healthcare in the US is often shockingly expensive to Brits.

There is another way, Walk in Centers. These quick in and out centers give you access to a qualified medical of staff who can write prescriptions. I had to visit one after suffering from a chesty cough – which turned out to be bronchitus! I can tell you that the experience was quick and easy. I walked in, filled out a quick form and signed a consent form then away you go, a quick examination and then a prescription for some anti-biotics. A visit to the hospital or doctors office here could have cost many hundreds of dollars. This cost me, $59 (this cost varies depending on the walk in center company that you use). I made sure that I got the prescription equivilant of "own brand drugs" from Wal-Mart – which offers $4 prescriptions. (staff at the walk in center can tell you if its on their list of $4 ones.) This is great news, for minor problems which occur in the short term its great, its no substitute for a Doctors visit for something major but for every day medical questions its great, and won’t break the bank.

The center I used was a concession within the Publix store off John Young Parkway in Kissimmee next to the great Hunters Creek Sub-division and Golf Course.

This advice shows that this convenient option is affordable and useful for Brits as it involves less paperwork and cost for something which in the UK you would just stop and see your GP about. I suppose that you could argue its what you pay travel insurance for…but for a bit less hassle it could work for you.

So, when looking at your dream Florida property, maybe think at the back of your mind, what healthcare provisions are nearby incase I need them?

You can also click on the find your new home link which will allow you to search our featured listings as well as the MLS System for Central Florida. Or, you can click on the contact us link to find the best way to contact us.

Please, feel free to Email, (info@Britishhomesgroup.com) or call UK Free phone 0800 096 5989 or USA Toll-Free 1-888-407-2748 or international/local dialing: 1-407-396-9914.

florida real estate

The largest home in Lake County, Which is a monstrous 32,000 square feet. – Remember the average American home is 2,000 square feet and the average home in Britain is between 800 and 1200 square feet is set to go into foreclosure if the bank does not get the loans secured against it repaid.

However despite its trouble in he past it has now been destined to auction after a court order. Today is supposedly the date of the auction. The mansion and the surrounding 155 acres of beautiful Central Florida are up for grabs.

The mansion and its surrounding area has been slated for residential development. However there are still many hurdles before any development could get out of the ground.

What is for sure is that this house is an asset to Lake County, its location is absolutely breathtaking, it is perched upon the top of a rolling hill in rural Groveland.

In fact a scenic way of seeing this beauty is to take CR 561 A from Highway 27 at Minneola (Just past Clermont) follow the road past the African Mission Inn, you will drive along the shore of lake Minneola, then you will take a right on Jalarny Road then at the T- Junction at the end of that take a left… and just follow that road through rolling hills, pasture and palm tree nurseries…whilst passing an exclusive subdivision amongst the lakes you will see the largest Home in Lake County perched atop its hill on the horizon. Once you reach SR 19 take a left towards Groveland itself then a left again onto Hwy 50 which will take you all the way back to the 27. Note this drive is particularly beautiful around sunset.

Give it a try!!

The reason that Brit’s buy in Florida is pure and simple, common language, better weather, nice property and all their favourite attractions are on their doorstep. Oh…and the added bonus at the moment of the exchange rate.

However, Europeans are jumping on the band wagon…A strong Euro makes US homes a bargain for Europeans. The Orlando Sentinel details some stories of Europeans who own property here and how they love the weather and the lifestyle. However many think that the place isnt getting enough advertising in Europe, many Europeans simply do not know about the place.

Maria McKee-Gandy with Worldvest Properties Inc. said that the UK and Ireland represent Central Florida’s comfort zone but there is great potential in other parts of Europe as well. She said that "Realtor’s like to work with what they are familiar with"

What is interesting is that the article identify’s that American’s have been put off by Florida’s high real estate prices, high property taxes and insurance rates. However what is interesting as they identify that Northern Europeans pay even more that Americans do here in Florida for these things and more for living expenses. – As a Brit in Florida, try telling a local that in Britain, Gas (Petrol) is $7.00 a US Gallon and see their face flinch! (In fact many do not believe you!)

This could be the next expat or second homeowner boom as an untapped market starts to get underway…

Inflation figures for the UK economy are out and inflation is currently per the CPI index (Consumer Price Index) at 3.1% more than one point above the governments target of Inflation at 2.0%. This is what has helped the pound rise against the dollar to its 15 year high of $2 to £1…however the exchange rate was trading yesterday within half a cent of a thirty year high!

However this growth in the UK economy makes a further exchange rate rise in the Bank of England Base rate more than just likely…

What does this mean for Florida property and mortgages? well…quite simply now is the time to buy, this could be the last good opportunity to buy or refinance a Florida property. This is coupled with figures released today saying that the current buyers market in the area is looking like it is coming to an end, the number of new builds is up and the number of building permits has increased for the second month in a row.

So, with a good exchange rate, a good fixed rate mortgage and the market at the bottom possibly on the cusp of a good level of capital growth, it looks like now is the best time yet for Brits to buy in Florida.

This is it, the moment Brits have been waiting for, the £1 has reached a 15 year high against the $ Dollar.
The current rate is trading at….