Sagging property values ease newer homeowners' tax burden

As residents get their annual tax notices, many of those with the highest property tax burden — newer homeowners who bought at top-dollar prices — are happy to see a sharply lower bill. At the same time, some longtime homeowners who enjoyed years of having tax bills capped thanks to the Save Our Homes constitutional amendment face rising taxes even though their property values plunged. "It's the flip side," said Jim Flateau of Land O'Lakes, who is one of about 290,000 taxpayers in the Tampa Bay area who are benefitting from lower tax bills. He owes more on his mortgage than his house is worth, but he stands to pay up to $500 less in taxes for 2009 after his home lost 20 percent of its value.

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Option ARMs Put Recovery at Risk

Option ARMs, which accounted for $750 billion in mortgages issued between 2004 and 2007, according to Inside Mortgage Finance, are at serious risk with at least 50 percent already in default. Resets on option ARMS have doubled the payments for many holders. “Everyone’s been focused on subprime, but we’re more concerned about this,” says Todd Jadlos, managing director of LPS Applied Analytics, which analyzes data for the financial industry. “By the time subprime defaults had increased 200 percent, in June and July of 2007, option ARMs had gone up 400 percent. People just didn’t notice because the overall numbers weren’t as high.” Lenders have stopped offering option ARMS, but there are about 600,000 held by borrowers, three-quarters of whom are paying interest only. When the cap is reached – for most after they have held the loan for five years – they’ll face drastic increases. Barclays Capital estimates that banks will lose $112 billion on option ARMs. Some banks are aggressively refinancing these loans, Barclays says.

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Deducting mortgage interest? That could change

This month the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office delivered its latest revenue-raising options for Senate and House consideration as their members write this fall's tax and budget legislation. Tucked away in the report are several incendiary plans that could — if adopted — cost homeowners billions of dollars. Though not formal legislative proposals, the CBO's options represent a handy fiscal menu for legislators to pick and choose from to reduce the deficit — now at unprecedented levels — or to pay for new programs they might want to advance. Tops on the CBO's list for housing: slash deductions for homeowner mortgage interest from the present $1.1 million limit to $500,000, phased in with $100,000 annual reductions starting in 2013 and extending to 2019. Under current law, taxpayers can write off mortgage interest on their principal home debt up to $1 million, and on home equity debt up to $100,000. Under the CBO's option, that maximum mortgage debt amount would shrink yearly until it hit $500,000. Over a 10-year period, this change alone would boost federal tax collections by an estimated $41 billion.

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Mortgage Rates Remain Virtually Unchanged In Latest Weekly Survey

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.14 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending August 27, 2009, up from last week when it averaged 5.12 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.40 percent.

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July new US home sales up 9.6 percent

Sales of new homes surged 9.6 percent in July, another sign the housing market is climbing back from the historic bottom it reached early this year. Driven by falling prices, the fourth-straight monthly increase was greater than expected. The Commerce Department said Wednesday that sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 433,000 from an upwardly revised June rate of 395,000. Sales are now up more than 30 percent from the bottom in January, but are still off nearly 70 percent from the frenzied peak four years ago. The median sales price of $210,100, however, was down slightly from $210,400 in June and was off 11.5 percent from year-ago levels. Prices are still up from March's low of $205,100. Last month's sales pace was the strongest since September and exceeded the forecasts of economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters, who expected a pace of 390,000 units.

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Index shows US home prices increase from 1Q to 2Q

Home prices posted their first quarterly increase in three years, signaling the housing market has turned a corner. The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller's U.S. National Home Price Index released Tuesday rose nearly 3 percent from the first quarter to 133, though that reading is still down almost 15 percent from the second quarter last year. Home prices are at levels not seen since early 2003. Prices have fallen 30 percent from the peak in the second quarter of 2006.

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Survey finds Realtors hopeful

One question is on the minds of everyone in the market to buy a home: Will home prices continue to fall? Homebuyers may get conflicting advice. About 46 percent of the nation's real estate agents think home prices will stay the same during the next six months, according to a report released Monday from California-based HomeGain. The report shows that 31 percent of agents think prices will decrease, and 23 percent think prices have hit the bottom and will start to increase. Agents seem to be getting more optimistic. The first quarter survey showed just 11 percent expected prices to increase during the next six months. By the second quarter, that number had jumped to 22 percent. HomeGain surveyed more than 1,000 agents across the country this month.

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Survey: Fla. home loan delinquency highest in nation

Nearly 23 percent of residential loans in Florida were delinquent or in foreclosure in the second quarter, according to a survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association. Florida has the highest rate in the nation, followed by Nevada, Arizona and Michigan. “Florida continues to establish itself as the worst state in the union for mortgage performance, closely followed only by Nevada,” MBA chief economist Jay Brinkmann said in a media release. At the end of the second quarter, nearly 12 percent of Florida residential loans were in the process of foreclosure, up from 10.6 percent in the previous quarter. An additional 10.8 percent were delinquent by at least 30 days, up slightly from 10.7 percent in the first quarter.

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Tampa home prices fall, but some hope exists

Home prices in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater market dropped nearly 21 percent in June compared to a year ago but are showing slight improvement over the month before. A new study from First American CoreLogic showed home prices were down 20.8 percent in June year-over-year compared to a 21.2 percent decline in May. At the same time, home prices seem to be improving compared to January in the region, up 3.3 percent, the first time in four years that the spring and summer seasonal price trend has exhibited what CoreLogic has called a “normal pattern.”

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First-Time Buyer Tax Credit Extension Possible

Bills to extend the maximum $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers, which expires Nov. 30, are pending in both the U.S. House and the Senate. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat and chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, is co-sponsor of a bill with Georgia Republican Sen. Johnny Isakson that would raise the credit amount to a maximum of $15,000. Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid of Nevada favors an extension of the current credit. He was quoted by the Las Vegas Sun saying, "It's something we can get done." Odds are that the credit will be extended and broadened to cover all buyers next year, but the chances of the amount increasing aren’t as good, observers say.

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Condos looking for a comeback in Florida

Demand is on the rise for existing condominiums in Florida, that is if sellers are willing to part with them for less money. Existing condominium sales were up 38 percent in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater market in July and up 48 percent across the state, according to new figures released by the Florida Association of Realtors. There were 668 condominium units sold in the Greater Tampa area last month compared with 483 a year ago. The median prices in Tampa was $98,800, 33 percent off $147,300, and pretty much in line with the median price drop statewide from $168,700 to $108,300.

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What Has the Housing Crash Cost Americans?

How much real wealth have Americans lost so far in the real estate crash? The Federal Reserve estimates that the total market value of U.S. homes fell 18 percent from $21.9 trillion to $17.9 trillion or about $13,000 per person from the end of 2006 through March 31, 2009. The Fed also estimates that homeowner’s equity has declined 40 percent from the peak and now accounts for just 41.4 percent of real estate values. By comparison, after the last slump in the 1990s, home equity levels remained in the high 50s. This collapse in equity makes it difficult for potential buyers to sell their homes and trade up, which many experts say will weigh heavily on the housing recovery.

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First-time buyer tax credit boosts U.S. home sales

The U.S. housing market is rebounding faster than expected. The question is, can it last? Home resales jumped in July by the monthly percentage in at least 10 years as first-time buyers rushed to take advantage of a tax credit that expires Nov. 30. Sales jumped 7.2 percent and beat expectations, the National Association of Realtors said Friday. Sales hit a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.24 million in July, from a pace of 4.89 million in June. It was the fourth straight monthly increase and the strongest month since August 2007. Sales had been expected to rise to an annual pace of 5 million, according to economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters.

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Report: Chinese drywall has no radioactive threat

State and federal officials say homeowners shouldn't worry about radioactivity from Chinese drywall. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission asked the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Florida Department of Health to test drywall samples for phosphogypsum, or calcium sulfate. According to a report released Friday, traces of the material were found but the radioactive levels were no higher than what ordinarily would be found in the natural environment. Officials are continuing to investigate more than 1,100 drywall-related complaints. Chinese drywall has been blamed for emitting putrid odors and corroding metal air conditioning parts, and homeowners nationwide have complained about nose bleeds, headaches, sore throats and other ailments.

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Continuing Appraisal Problems In Pinellas County

Builder Charlie Hannah thought he was being generous when he agreed to sell a new 5,000-square-foot home for $1.15 million in the Tree Tops neighborhood near Tampa's Westchase. But the appraiser returned an appraised value of $1 million on the lakeside house in June. Two months later, the sale remains in limbo and Hannah remains indignant. Four other homes Hannah built in the same neighborhood recently sold for much more per square foot than the $1.15 million home. But the appraiser found a comparable home sale miles away in Odessa to justify what Hannah considers to be a low-ball valuation.

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Tampa Area July Home Sales Up 30%, Prices Down 19%

The Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater MSA reported a total of 2,822 homes sold in July compared to 2,174 homes a year ago for a 30 percent increase. The existing home median sales price was $143,100; a year ago, it was $176,500 for a 19 percent decrease. The average home price is up 17% from the low point in January 2009 of $122,400. The steep decline in the median price is starting to slow down. Click here for the latest projection of when the median price will be positive again. In the year-to-year comparison for the existing condo market, a total of 668 units sold in the MSA last month, up 38% from a year ago when 483 condos sold. The market’s existing condo median price was $98,800; a year ago, it was $147,300 for a 33 percent decrease.

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July US home sales surge more than 7 percent

The U.S. housing market is rebounding faster than expected. The question is, can it last? Home resales in July posted the largest monthly increase in at least 10 years as first-time buyers rushed to take advantage of a tax credit that expires this fall. Sales jumped 7.2 percent and beat expectations, the National Association of Realtors said Friday. Sales hit a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.24 million in July, from a pace of 4.89 million in June. It was the fourth-straight monthly increase and the strongest month since August 2007. Sales had been expected to rise to an annual pace of 5 million, according to economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters. The risks, however, are unemployment, mortgage rates, and a homebuyer tax credit that is over at the end of November. And the last one could be a doozy because first-time buyers are snapping up one out of every three homes. First-time buyers get a credit of 10 percent of the purchase price of a home, up to $8,000. Singles must earn less than $75,000, and couples less than $150,000. The real estate industry is lobbying to have the credit extended, but its unclear if Congress will be swayed.

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Tampa Area Unemployment Climbs To 11.3%, Up 0.1% From June

Florida's unemployment rate was 10.7 percent in July, unchanged from a revised June figure, state officials said this morning. That represents 987,000 jobless out of a labor force of 9.1 million, reflecting more than 400,000 fewer jobs in Florida than a year ago. By comparison, the national unemployment rate in July dropped slightly, from 9.5 percent to 9.4 percent. In the Tampa Bay area, unemployment rose to 11.3 percent from a revised June figure of 11.2 percent.

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China drywall fix is major project

As investigations continue and lawsuits mount, more Floridians are learning their homes were constructed with toxic drywall imported from China. Some have nowhere to turn because their builder has gone out of business or is unresponsive. The state has received nearly 600 complaints from homeowners who think they have the tainted drywall. Meanwhile, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is moving forward with plans to visit several sites in China where the drywall was manufactured. The agency has received 800 complaints about the product and is sampling air in homes in Florida and other states. The toxic drywall emits a corrosive gas that damages appliances. It smells of rotten eggs. The drywall was used in about 100,000 houses nationwide built during the housing boom. The health effects of the drywall are still under investigation, but homeowners have complained of headaches, dry eyes, rashes and respiratory problems.

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Realtors, builders pushing extension of first-time homebuyer tax credit

It's one of the biggest unknowns bugging would-be buyers of houses and condos this summer: Will Congress let the $8,000 nonrepayable tax credit for first-time purchasers expire as scheduled 14 weeks from now? Or will the credit get a second life and be extended, taking pressure off buyers, realty agents and settlement companies? That's an especially urgent matter if you're a buyer just starting to shop and you see entry-level prices bottoming out or rebounding in many local markets. The tax credit statute requires buyers to fully close on their purchases — not just be under contract — no later than Nov. 30. This doesn't leave a lot of leeway for people who haven't yet decided on a house and who haven't nailed down mortgage financing. The whole process of negotiating offers, signing sales contracts, applying for a loan and completing the closing can easily extend for two months — or a lot longer if things get off track.

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Mortgage Rates Down To Lowest Level In Three Months

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.12 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending August 20, 2009, down from last week when it averaged 5.29 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.47 percent.

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Florida court wants mediation in primary home foreclosures

The Florida Supreme Court's residential foreclosure task force recommended Monday that all cases involving primary homes should be mediated and that judges should expedite cases dealing with vacant and abandoned properties. The recommendations will go to the justices, who are looking for ways to help the court system cope with a flood of foreclosure cases caused by the national recession and Florida's housing bust. Florida has one of the nation's highest foreclosure rates. It was third at 3.4 percent behind Arizona and California in June. The panel suggested dividing foreclosure cases into three categories: primary homes, also known as homesteads; vacant and abandoned properties; and all others. Managed mediation should be required for homestead foreclosures unless the lender and borrower both agree to opt out or pre-suit mediation had been conducted, the task force wrote.

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Homebuilder confidence up in August

A confidence index among home builders inched up in August to its highest level in a year. The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index reached 18 this month, which was its highest since June 2008, said a media release. Sales expectations for the next six months saw the biggest gain in the index, followed by traffic of prospective buyers – four-point and three-point increases, respectively. Current sales conditions in the index remained unchanged. All regions of the country saw a gain in the confidence index except for the South, which had a one-point decline.

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Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties Lose Population

For the first time in years, Hillsborough County lost population. The University of Florida's Bureau of Economic and Business Research reports that Hillsborough saw 3,649 people leave between April 2008 and April 2009, or about 0.3 percent, for a population, of 1,196,892. Hillsborough's losses were in the unincorporated area and Plant City. Tampa gained 115 residents, rising to 339,480, and Temple Terrace added 108, for a total of 23,990. Pinellas lost 0.78 percent, or 7,348, dropping to a total of 931,113. Pasco gained 1,034, 0.24 percent, and Hernando added 141, about 0.1 percent. St. Petersburg lost 2,730, or 1.1 percent. Statewide, Florida's population dropped by 58,000 people.

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Buyers Rush to Beat Tax Credit Deadline

Real estate professionals report that first-time home buyers are flooding the sale market, pressed to finalize a deal before the federal government's $8,000 tax credit offer expires on Nov. 30. Because mortgage approvals, residential inspections, and other steps in the buying process typically take about two months, buyers hoping to take advantage of the incentive will need to have a contract by the end of September. The new flurry of activity now as house-hunters try to meet the deadline is triggering bidding wars and energizing the property market, which historically is slow at the end of summer. As a result, more homes are getting their full asking price.

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Inventory of Houses Falls in July

The number of homes listed for sale declined again in many U.S. cities last month as bargain hunters continued to search for foreclosed properties. The supply of homes available for sale in 28 major metropolitan areas at the end of July was down 2.5% from a month earlier, according to figures compiled by ZipRealty Inc., a real-estate brokerage firm based in Emeryville, Calif. The Zip data cover all single-family homes, condominiums and town houses listed on local multiple-listing services in metro areas where the firm operates. On a national basis over the past 25 years, inventories in July have fallen by an average of 1% from the June level, according to Zelman & Associates, a research firm. Compared with the year-earlier month, the July inventory in the 28 metro areas was down 27%, according to the Zip data.

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Florida Real Estate Market Predicted To Take 20 Years To Recover

There are tentative signs the depressed housing market may finally be close to bottoming out. That might sound like good news, but hitting bottom doesn't mean an upward rebound will follow anytime soon. Economist Celia Chen of Moody's Economy.com has published a forecast suggesting that residential real estate could take 10 years to recover in most states--and 20 years in Florida and California. Chen predicts that house prices will stop falling by the second quarter of 2010, which is consistent with what the Federal Reserve and many other forecasters have said. But her longer-term outlook helps explain why many economists are gloomy about the nation's economic prospects for the next several years. Some of Chen's predictions: By the time house prices stop falling, they'll be down 43 percent from peak prices reached in 2006, as measured by the Case-Shiller home-price index. That will mark the deepest housing correction since 1890, and probably ever in the United States (meaningful data go back only to the late 19th century). The prior worst housing bust was from 1916 to 1932, when house values fell 37 percent. Beating that dismal record suggests we're no smarter now than in the Great Depression.

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Home prices now affordable, but fear keeping many from buying

Homes haven't been this affordable in decades. Real estate agents have plenty of business. Desirable properties can be had for less than half the price of two years ago. So why aren't sales booming? Fear. People worry about losing their jobs in this economy, worry values will continue to freefall. Primarily, first time home buyers and investors are buying. The first group is motivated by a government incentive. The last by the desperation of sellers of distressed properties. Home prices in the Tampa Bay metro area are more affordable now than they have been over the past 20 years, according to Moody's Economy.com.

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More than half of Tampa Bay homeowners with a mortgage owe more than home's worth

First American CoreLogic said 50.6 percent of Tampa Bay residential mortgages, worth $59.3 billion, were upside-down as of June 30. That comes to about 351,980 mortgages out of roughly 700,000 in the region. In Florida as a whole, 2.3 million out of 4.7 million mortgage borrowers — or 49.4 percent — had negative equity. In March, First American reported that 31 percent of Tampa Bay homeowners were underwater, but the rise since then is deceptive. The company said it has changed its methodology to include more second mortgages. Counting that extra housing debt shoved more homeowners into negative equity territory.

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Long Term Mortgage Rates Inch Up On Encouraging Labor News

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.29 percent with an average 0.7 point for the week ending August 13, 2009, up from last week when it averaged 5.22 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.52 percent.

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BusinessWeek Predicting Real Estate Poised For Rebound

Marc Roth, a writer for BusinessWeek, is predicting the residential real estate market is poised for a rebound.

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Drywall investigation moves to China

The investigation of the use of tainted Chinese drywall will move to what investigators believe is the source of the problem. The Consumer Product Safety Commission noted in its August update that it has received approval from the Chinese government to arrange for an investigative visit beginning on Aug. 17. The agency said it has received 202 more incident reports related to Chinese drywall in July, raising the total to 810 reports. It also has reports from two new states, Pennsylvania and South Carolina, bringing the total to 23 states and the District of Columbia. The agency said that, to date, it has confirmed that more than 6.2 million sheets of Chinese drywall were imported into the United States and more than 28,000 sheets were imported into Guam, Saipan and American Samoa during 2006.

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Mixed news on residential real estate from FAR, RealtyTrac

The Florida Association of Realtors said Wednesday that Tampa Bay area home sales rose nearly 24 percent in the second quarter from a year ago. But that good news was followed by a report that residential foreclosures rose 14.35 percent in July from the same month last year. Florida remained No. 4 in the nation with 56,486 foreclosures, while the Tampa Bay MSA, consisting of Hernando, Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties, was 32nd in the nation with 6,767 foreclosures in July, RealtyTrac said. Tampa Bay had one foreclosure for every 194 houses, which was lower than the state’s one foreclosure for every 154 houses. Month-to-month, Tampa Bay foreclosures dropped 6.22 percent in July.

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Lansbrook Village Condo Development Repossessed By Lender

In one of the region's costliest property foreclosures, Lansbrook Village, a 774-unit condominium complex in East Lake, was repossessed by its lender Wednesday for failing to pay $75 million in debts. The bank took back the common areas of the condo property, including its three swimming pools, as well as the hundreds of unsold apartments. The foreclosure has nothing to do with the Lansbrook Golf Club or the single-family neighborhood of the same name. Lansbrook Village units that sold initially for $150,000 generally fetch far below $100,000 these days.

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US Foreclosures rise 7 percent in July from June

The number of U.S. households on the verge of losing their homes rose 7 percent from June to July, as the escalating foreclosure crisis continued to outpace government efforts to limit the damage. Foreclosure filings were up 32 percent from the same month last year, RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday. More than 360,000 households, or one in every 355 homes, received a foreclosure-related notice, such as a notice of default or trustee's sale. That's the highest monthly level since the foreclosure-listing firm began publishing the data more than four years ago. Banks repossessed more than 87,000 homes in July, up from about 79,000 homes a month earlier. Nevada had the nation's highest foreclosure rate for the 31st-straight month, followed by California, Arizona, Florida and Utah. Rounding out the top 10 were Idaho, Georgia, Illinois, Colorado and Oregon. Among cities, Las Vegas had the highest rate, followed by the California cities of Stockton and Modesto.

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Home sales rise from 1st quarter to 2nd

U.S. home sales grew in the second quarter in 39 states, another sign that the ailing housing market is finally coming to life. Total quarterly sales rose 3.8 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.76 million, from 4.58 million in the first quarter, but were still about 3 percent below a year ago, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday. Sales posted quarterly gains of 20 percent or more in Idaho, Hawaii, New York, Wisconsin and Nebraska. But Alaska, Wyoming, California, Colorado and Michigan dropped by at least 6 percent. Prices, however, were still down from a year ago in 129 out of 155 metropolitan areas the group tracks. The median sales price in the quarter was $174,100, almost 16 percent below a year ago. The biggest drop, of nearly 53 percent, was in Fort Myers, Fla. Prices also fell 35 percent or more in Phoenix, Riverside, Calif. and Las Vegas. The biggest price gain, of nearly 31 percent, was in Davenport, Iowa, followed by Cumberland, Md., at nearly 22 percent.

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July homes sales in Pinellas, Hillsborough rise as prices dip

According to the Greater Tampa Association of Realtors, sales rose in July to 1,736, a 23 percent increase from July 2008. Tidings were similar from the Pinellas Realtor Organization. July home sales rose 26 percent from a year earlier to 1,134. In both counties, home sale prices dipped 21 percent year over year. The supply of homes on the market is high but constricting. In Pinellas, inventory was 12,479 in July 2009 versus 15,919 in July 2008. In Hillsborough, the number of homes for sale dropped to 14,187, lowest since May 2006. Investor interest appears strong. All-cash deals accounted for 31 percent of sales in Hillsborough and 44 percent in Pinellas.

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My Home Price Predictions

Based on sales data from the Pinellas Realtor Organization from the last two years, it appears that the decline in home prices will stop by the end of the year and that the beginning of 2010 will see the first increase in year over year median home prices since 2006. The graph below shows that by October or November this fall, the price declines will zero out if the latest median home price of around $140,000 holds through the rest of the year. The median price has been increasing since January so, barring any surprising economic bad news, this is not unreasonable. The market hit bottom in January with a median home price of $122,400 and a year over year decline of 33%. I expect the news media will pick up on this in the fourth quarter and if a price increase occurs at the beginning of the year, we will see a wave of buyers who have been sitting on the fence waiting for the good news. My advice: Buy now and if you are looking to sell, wait until February of 2010.

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EPA Investigates Chinese Drywall Claims

Home owners in Florida, as well as other parts of the country, are claiming that drywall imported from China is making them sick and corroding the plumbing and HVAC systems in their homes. An estimated 100,000 houses in the United States, most built in 2006 and 2007, may have some of the allegedly defective drywall, which is being investigated by a plethora of government agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for Disease Control. If these investigations result in a recall, it could be a costly proposition. Experts estimate that pulling out defective drywall and replacing corroded electrical wiring, plumbing and HVAC in an affected home could cost at least $100,000 per property. Several class action lawsuits have been consolidated in federal court in New Orleans, but suing foreign-based manufacturers for liability is difficult and any judgment is almost impossible to enforce, experts say.

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The Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act Gives New Rights To Renters

Historically, renters haven't had many rights if their landlord stopped paying the mortgage. A lender took back the home, and the renter was forced to vacate. But with so many renters getting tossed out, Congress changed the rules in May. The Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act says renters must be given at least 90 days to leave. The Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009 signed into law on Wednesday, May 20th, 2009 provides a 90-day notice requirement and additional protections for tenants in foreclosed properties. Below you will find the major provisions outlined under Title VII, Protecting Tenants at Foreclosure Act of 2009. These provisions expire on December 31, 2012.

- During the term of the lease, the tenant has a right to remain in the unit and cannot be evicted, except for actions that constitute good cause.

- If the lease ends in less than 90 days, the new owner may not evict the tenant without giving the tenant at a minimum 90 days notice.

- At the end of the term of the lease, the new owner may terminate the tenancy if the new owner provides a 90-day notice.

- The new owner may terminate the tenancy if the owner will occupy the unit as a primary residence, and has provided the tenant a notice to vacate at least 90 days before the effective date of such notice. This is the only exception to the rule that the tenant may not be evicted during the term of the lease.

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Community Development Districts (CDDs) Under Investigation By IRS

The IRS has accused a community development district in The Villages of misusing $64 million in tax-exempt bonds and overpaying for courses, guardhouses and other amenities. Conceived to help roads and utilities keep pace with population growth, community development districts let developers sell bonds — at a favorable rate because buyers do not pay tax on the interest — and spend the proceeds on new communities. As families move into the homes, they take control of the districts, as happened in Tampa Palms, Westchase and dozens of communities around Tampa Bay. Issues about community development district governance, gates and guardhouses aren't uncommon. In 2002, the Hillsborough County Commission cracked down on gates that blocked public and community development district-financed roads, including those at Heritage Harbor in Lutz. Guards were told they could question motorists, but not prevent them from entering. In New Tampa's Cory Lake Isles, lots sold so slowly that developer Gene Thomason, his family and associates dominated the district for more than a decade. Thomason had a community wide landscape contract. His wife and son ran a real estate office in the clubhouse, paying little or no rent. In November, residents assumed control over the board, signaling an end to both arrangements.

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State Farm Florida can eliminate or reduce discounts, state says

State Farm Florida can eliminate or reduce some discounts it offers policyholders, state regulators announced Thursday, increasing premiums for homeowners as much as 28.4 percent. The decision by the Office of Insurance Regulation will bring in $278 million in additional premiums for the company after all policies come up for renewals starting Dec. 1, agency officials say. However, State Farm can't reduce the credits it offers home­owners for installing wind-mitigation features such as storm shutters, impact-resistant windows and doors, or reinforced garage doors to protect a home against violent weather. Had State Farm been allowed to get out of mitigation discounts, that would have meant an additional 13 to 17 percent increase for its policyholders.

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Good Economic News This Week Helps Mortgage Rates To Slightly Drop

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 5.22 percent with an average 0.6 point for the week ending August 6, 2009, down from last week when it averaged 5.25 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.52 percent.

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Pending home sales index rises again in June

Pending U.S. home sales rose in June for the fifth straight month, another encouraging sign of life for the embattled U.S. housing market, the National Association of Realtors reported Tuesday. For June, the Realtors group said its pending home sales index rose 3.6 percent to 94.6, from an upwardly revised reading of 91.3 in May. The last time there were five consecutive monthly gains was July 2003. The results were far better than analysts expected. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected the index to come in at 91.2. The report tracks signed contracts to purchase previously owned homes and is considered a barometer for future home sales. Typically there is a one- to two- month lag between a sales contract and a completed deal. The jump in pending home sales coincides with other positive trends in the residential real estate market.

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Construction spending up slightly

There’s another sign that the housing market may be turning the corner. Construction spending rose unexpectedly in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $965.7 billion, or 0.3 percent above the revised May estimate of $963.2 billion. However, the U.S. Department of Commerce reported that the June figure is still 10.2 percent blow last June.

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AP analysis: Foreclosures stabilize in key states

Even as Americans suffer rising unemployment, foreclosure rates in three states hit hardest by the housing bust — California, Arizona and Florida — stabilized in June, offering hope that the worst of the real estate crisis is over, according to The Associated Press' monthly analysis of economic stress in more than 3,100 U.S. counties. The latest results of AP's Economic Stress Index show foreclosure and bankruptcy rates held steady from May in some states. Yet mounting unemployment is hampering an economic recovery in some regions, especially the Southeast and industrial Midwest.

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FHA Program to Help Struggling Home Owners

The newly enhanced FHA Making Home Affordable Loan Modification Program will help struggling home owners—who qualify—to significantly reduce their monthly mortgage payments and stay in their homes, said NAR President Charles McMillan in a public statement. The changes expand the Obama administration's Making Home Affordable Loan Modification Program to include FHA borrowers. NAR is optimistic that this will have positive implications for thousands of home owners, McMillan said. “Until foreclosures have been significantly reduced and housing inventory reaches a more normal level, there can be no true housing recovery," McMillan said. "The FHA–HAMP program will go a long way in achieving these important goals by helping FHA servicers bring mortgages current, buy down loans by up to 30 percent of the unpaid principal balance, and defer these amounts until the first mortgage is paid off."

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Property value drop slows

Florida's taxable property values will keep dropping for another year but at a slightly slower pace than previously forecast before beginning to rebound in 2011, state economists said this week. The new estimate will mean a smaller decline in property tax dollars than had been expected for local governments and schools if tax rates remain unchanged.

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