Panama City Beach Home Prices

March home price gains highest since 2007

IRVINE, Calif. – April 21, 2016 – U.S. home prices rose 17 percent year-to-year in March, according to RealtyTrac’s latest report for month and first quarter of the year – and Florida remains the king of all-cash sales: State metro areas took all spots on the top five all-cash-sales list.

RealtyTrac’s March and Q1 2016 U.S. Home Sales report finds that the average U.S. home sold for $30,500 more than they owner paid for it – a 17 percent average gain in price. It’s the highest monthly average price gain for sellers since the onset of the Great Recession (December, 2007).

While Florida had a handful of cities with high price gains, it stood out in one type of sale category overall: All-cash sales. Among 110 metro areas with at least 1,000 single family and condo sales in the first quarter, those at the top for cash buyers were all in Florida: Naples, (57.1 percent cash buyers) Miami (53.9 percent), North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton (53.4 percent), Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville (52.7 percent) and Ocala (51.6 percent).

“South Florida real estate attracts world money,” says Mike Pappas, CEO and president of Keyes Company, covering the South Florida market. “Our strong international, northeast and investor buyers push our cash sales to 50 percent.”

Two markets, Jacksonville and the Daytona Beach area, also ranked high in RealtyTrac’s study for yearly home price increases. The markets with the biggest annual increase in median home price were Philadelphia (up 29 percent), followed by Rockford, Illinois (up 22 percent); Jacksonville (up 22 percent); Cincinnati, Ohio (up 19 percent); and Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach (up 18 percent).

“Home sellers in many markets are now seeing average price gains close to or above what home sellers experienced during the last housing boom,” says Daren Blomquist, senior vice president at RealtyTrac. “That should encourage more homeowners to take advantage of the prime seller’s market and list their homes for sale this year. Banks are already taking advantage of that market as evidenced by the uptick in the distressed sales share over the last two quarters.”

Blomquist says that an uptick in distressed sales in many markets combined with affordability problems contribute “to faltering home price appreciation in some markets – most notably the bellwether markets of Washington, D.C. and San Francisco. He notes that “bank-owned homes are selling at a median price that is 40 percent below the overall median sales price nationwide.”

Home sellers who sold in March had, on average, owned for 7.67 years, up 4 percent from an average of 7.37 years for home sellers who sold in March 2015.

Nationwide, one in three U.S. metro markets (36 percent) are now at all-time home price highs. March was the 49th consecutive month with a year-over-year increase in the U.S. median home price, though, on average, it’s still 8 percent below its peak in July 2005.

Distressed sales – bank-owned sales, in-foreclosure sales and short sales – have risen for the past two quarters. They accounted for 18.2 percent of all single family and condo sales in the first quarter, up from 17.2 percent in the previous quarter. Still, distressed sales are down year-to-year after peaking at 44 percent in the first quarter of 2009.

Among 110 metro areas with at least 1,000 single family and condo sales in the first quarter, those with the highest share of distressed sales were Chicago, Illinois (31.0 percent); Flint, Michigan (29.9 percent); Baltimore, Maryland (28.8 percent); Tallahassee (28.1 percent); and Jacksonville (27.6 percent).

Buyers using loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) – typically first-time buyers or boomerang buyers with a low downpayment – accounted for 15.2 percent of all single family and condo sales in the first quarter, up from 14.8 percent in the previous quarter and up from 13.5 percent a year ago.

© 2016 Florida Realtors®  

8 Bad ‘Home Improvement’ Habits from RealtorMag

Home owners can overdo it when it comes to the upkeep of their home. This Old House recently spotlighted several ways that home owners’ enthusiasm for home ownership may actually harm the house.

1. Having light bulbs that are too bright. You want a well-lit home, but exceeding a lamp or light fixture’s recommended wattage can be dangerous, particularly with incandescents or halogen lights, says John Drengenberg, consumer safety director for Underwriters Laboratories. “Using a bulb with too-high wattage will cause the fixture and its wiring to overheat,” he notes, which could then allow the heat to travel to the wall or erode the insulation on the wires and lead to a house fire. Check the fixtures label to make sure you use the correct wattage.

2. Planting trees near driveways or walkways. A line of trees to the house may up its curb appeal but adding young trees near driveways or walkways could be putting your slab at risk. As these trees grow taller, their roots will go outward, potentially pushing up the paving and causing it to buckle or crack. This Old House recommends planting small trees that will remain under 20 feet at maturity and that are at least 10 feet from paved areas. For larger trees, leave at least a 20-foot radius.

3. Overscrubbing a sink. Don’t overdo it with abrasive cleaners; they can scratch the sink. “Cleaners with a grit or grain to them will wear away at the finish and dull it,” Kohler‘s Mike Marbuch told This Old House. “That will make the sink more prone to gunk sticking to it—actually making it look dirtier.” Try a liquid cleanser like vinegar or lemon juice on the sink and avoid scrubbing it every day.

4. Overdoing it with can lights. Excessive recessed lighting in a home can cause a lot of air leaks. Recessed lighting is known as causing heat-sucking air leaks, especially when the fixtures are unsealed in vaulted ceilings. Airtight recessed lighting fixtures are available that are rated for insulation contact (IC). Also, use as few recessed lights as you can, especially when it comes to adding them to cathedral ceilings or in rooms directly below unconditioned attics.

5. Spreading too much mulch outside. “Over-mulching will suffocate plants, confuse their root systems, and prevent water from percolating into the soil,” notes the article at This Old House. “If you’ve mulched so much that tree trunks and flowers’ and shrubs’ lower branches are covered by or dragging in it, you’ve gone overboard.” Have mulch no thicker than 3 inches.

6. Using glass cleaner on mirrors. Watch out for store-bought sprays that promise to make your glass sparkle. “A drop of liquid running around the mirror’s edge can cause the reflective backing to lift or craze,” This Old House notes. The black edge can occur from using ammonia- or vinegar-based cleaners. This Old House recommends using warm water and a soft, lint-free cloth to clean mirrors. Or if you do use the sprays, spray it onto a dry cloth first and not directly onto the glass.

7. Repainting too much. “Excessive paint is detrimental – especially on an older house, which may have layers of thicker oil-based paint, which becomes brittle with age,” notes This Old House. To avoid thick, cracked, or peeling paint, be sure to carefully power-wash prior to painting, sand areas that need it, and then use 100 percent acrylic-resin exterior paint.

8. Fertilizing too much. Fertilizing too often can spur more weeds to grow. Also, the Environmental Protection Agency warns over-fertilizing can cause “nutrient pollution,” which is when nitrogen and phosphorus runoff from lawn fertilizers and then leads to an overgrowth of algae that can even pollute local waterways. Some lawn experts recommend only fertilizing twice a year, late summer and fall only.

The Tax Benefits of Owning a Home

From building equity to giving you a chance to settle down and plant roots, homeownership comes with potential benefits that renting simply doesn’t offer. Among them are several tax advantages worth knowing about. Here’s a quick look at how to make the most of those tax deductions.

Deducting Mortgage Interest…
Unless you recently won the lottery, chances are good that you took out a mortgage to pay for your home. If that’s the case, then you already know that this type of loan is a big commitment that often spans up to 30 years. But you may be able to deduct the interest you pay on a mortgage that doesn’t exceed $1 million. That limit shrinks to $500,000 if you’re married but filing taxes separately from your spouse. As tax season approaches, your lender will send you a Form 1098, which states how much mortgage interest you’ve paid in the past year. Once you know that amount, you’ll have to itemize your deduction using Form 1040’s Schedule A. The amount of money you’ll save depends on your taxable income. Generally speaking, the higher your earnings, the more money you can save.

Property Taxes also Qualify for Deductions
Homeowners can also reduce their taxable income by deducting their property taxes. Your lender has probably set you up with an escrow account, which is used to pay for things such as homeowners insurance and property taxes. To figure out how much money to deduct, take a look at the escrow statement to see how much you paid in taxes. You’ll generally be able to cut your taxable income by that amount.

The Takeaway
Because financing and maintaining a house or apartment can put a real dent in your wallet, it’s a good idea to take advantage of all the help you can get. Maximizing the tax breaks that homeowners qualify for is a great starting point. To do so, be sure to keep an eye out for Form 1098, as well as the escrow statement. Although filling out and filing these documents may take some getting used to, you’ll be a veteran in no time, and it may be well worth the effort.

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Average rate on 30-year mortgage falls to 3.62%

WASHINGTON (AP) – Feb. 25, 2016 – Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates fell this week as anxiety over the global economy persisted. Long-term rates resumed their decline after being unchanged last week following six straight weeks of easing.

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday the average rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage slipped to 3.62 percent from 3.65 percent last week. That puts it well below the 3.80 percent it marked a year ago.

The average rate on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages declined to 2.93 percent from 2.95 percent last week.

Mortgage rates have continued to fall despite the Federal Reserve’s decision in December to raise the short-term rate it controls for the first time since 2006.

Global economic worries and turbulence in world stock markets have pushed up prices of U.S. government bonds as investors seek safety. That has depressed the yields on the bonds, which mortgage rates follow. The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond has dropped to strikingly low levels below the significant 2-percent mark.

The benchmark yield stood at 1.75 percent Wednesday, down from 1.81 percent a week earlier. The yield fell further to 1.72 percent Thursday morning. That compares with 2.27 percent before the Fed’s rate hike on Dec. 16.

Despite the decline in mortgage rates this year, new government data show that Americans stepped back from buying new homes in January, as purchases plunged sharply in western states where prices are typically higher.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that new-home sales fell 9.2 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 494,000. Most of the decline stemmed for a 32.1 percent drop in sales in the West. Sales also slipped in the Midwest, while edging up in the Northeast and South.

To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country at the beginning of each week. The average doesn’t include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fees for a 30-year mortgage rose to 0.6 point from 0.5 point last week. The fee for a 15-year loan was unchanged at 0.5 point.

Rates on the adjustable five-year mortgage averaged 2.79 percent this week, down from 2.85 percent last week. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 2.99 percent.

The fee on a five-year adjustable-rate mortgage increased to 0.5 point from 0.4 point.

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