It really doesn’t matter where you live, what's pummeling housing prices in your area is the same thing that's hurting everybody around the country: the credit crisis.
Banks' troubles have made it harder for many home buyers to get mortgages, and those who do qualify have to pay more. A borrower with good credit and a 20% down payment recently have been hit with an interest rate of 6.7%, on average, according to HSH Associates.
Looking at the Miami Metro Area, we find that the average home price in 2009 will be around 214,551, with a decrease in price of -18.8%.
One good news is that the speculative Florida market, which has already seen annual home-price declines of up to 30%, could see slightly smaller declines simply because values have already fallen so much.
The loss in the market value also translates into a loss of taxable value for schools and local governments, a decrease of .3 percent this year and 1.5 percent in 2009 for schools statewide.
What we see happening in the market today will not be reflected until next year, which is going to be much worse, mainly because of really unscrupulous mortgage brokers.
But there is always a bright for somebody in almost every situation. Current trends in real estate make it a buyers market, rather than a sellers market. In just the last several months, the market has slowed enough that sellers are lowering their prices.
Pre-construction sales were high for several condo projects. The reason is that investors purchased many of them, hoping for a large increase in value, as was projected. Recent slowdowns are forcing them now to sell, and there are more on the market than buyers to buy, which is the best time buyers, or investors not looking for short-term investment. Miani-Dade county sales dropped 38 percent in the last quarter of 2005 from 2004. Prices, however, had increased by 29 percent, with the average price for Miami-Dade being $375,900.
The Miami area continues to be a great area as far as business and economy. The slowdown seems to be nationwide in the real estate market, not just here in Miami.
Mortgage rates are expected to increase, so now is the perfect time to consider moving to the sunshine state. Asking prices are down, and availability is almost triple what it was a year ago.
All the reasons people want to live in Miami are still here. It’s a great area for business and it has a large financial market. Thousands of people relocate to Florida each year. Of course, weather plays a part in that. Tourism dollars bring money to the state as well.
Contributed by MLR Realty
Home