The U.S. Department of Commerce just released its New Home Sales report showing a 13% drop-off in annualized sales between December and January, the biggest one-month drop since May 2010.
In addition, the supply of new homes for sale spiked higher to 7.9 months last month, the number of months it would take to sell the complete “for sale” new home inventory at the current pace. In December, the supply measured just 7.0 months,
However. ther is good news here for home buyers. For buyers of new construction home buyers, slowing sales can be good news. Weaker markets put pressure on the home builder to discount prices and, in many cases, also offer free upgrades to buyers.
So, says, Bob Henley, a Sarasota Florida real estate expert, "if you are thinking about buying a builder's new construction hpme, now is the time to get with a Licensed Realtor who can help you negotiate a great price."
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Inaccurate News About January Housing Starts
More specifically, the data reported by major news organizations is not technically "inaccurate", it's just very misleading.
A "Housing Start," says Andree Huffine, a popular Sarasota real estate broker, "is defined as a home (or housing unit) on which construction started during the month.+
If you recently saw the news reports on January, 2011 Housing Starts, you would think they went up by over 14% and were at the highest level in 4 years. But actually, annualized nationwide single-family home housing starts, the number most of us are interested in, actually fell by 1% in January to 413,000 units, the lowest level in almost 2 years.
Ths confusing situation is caused by the fact that, while the Census Bureau reports Housing Starts by "property type," newspaper headlines typically lump all three Census Bureau categories into a single value.
Here's how the categories actually were reported for January, 2011 by the Census Bureau:
Single-Family Homes were down 4,000 units, or -1%
2-4 Unit Homes saw a negligible change
5 or more Unit Apartment Building Starts were up by 46,000 units, or +80%
Combined together, thses dat apoints do, infact, represent the reported 14% increase. But, the "surge" in nationwide housing starts reported by most news organizations occurred only in one category, the 5-unit-and-up apartment building category. Single-family housing starts were actually down by 1%, not up at all.
Like many things in the real estate business here in Georgia or elsewere, you need to work with a professional. "Introduce yourself to a reputable mortgage broker and a licensed Realtor and trust the information they provide. Don't just read the headlines and react," says Cheryl Stimac, a prominent Tampa FL real estate agent,
A "Housing Start," says Andree Huffine, a popular Sarasota real estate broker, "is defined as a home (or housing unit) on which construction started during the month.+
If you recently saw the news reports on January, 2011 Housing Starts, you would think they went up by over 14% and were at the highest level in 4 years. But actually, annualized nationwide single-family home housing starts, the number most of us are interested in, actually fell by 1% in January to 413,000 units, the lowest level in almost 2 years.
Ths confusing situation is caused by the fact that, while the Census Bureau reports Housing Starts by "property type," newspaper headlines typically lump all three Census Bureau categories into a single value.
Here's how the categories actually were reported for January, 2011 by the Census Bureau:
Single-Family Homes were down 4,000 units, or -1%
2-4 Unit Homes saw a negligible change
5 or more Unit Apartment Building Starts were up by 46,000 units, or +80%
Combined together, thses dat apoints do, infact, represent the reported 14% increase. But, the "surge" in nationwide housing starts reported by most news organizations occurred only in one category, the 5-unit-and-up apartment building category. Single-family housing starts were actually down by 1%, not up at all.
Like many things in the real estate business here in Georgia or elsewere, you need to work with a professional. "Introduce yourself to a reputable mortgage broker and a licensed Realtor and trust the information they provide. Don't just read the headlines and react," says Cheryl Stimac, a prominent Tampa FL real estate agent,
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Have You Visited this New Sarasota Real Estate Site
If you haven't yet visited this new Sarasota real estate website, you owe it to yourself to give it a quick view. We think you'll agree that this is a truly unique view of the Sarasota Florida lifestyle.
Among other attributes, this website offers descriptions of virtually all of the nicest Sarasota golf course communities and Sarasota waterfront communities. it also lists all of the most popular Sarasota attractions.
Lt us know what you think after your visit.
The Staff at Real Estate of Florida.com
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