Welcome to Tampa Real Estate News!

by Deborah Farmer on January 18, 2012 in Economy, Ethics, Events, Florida Realtors, Issues, Links, Local Real Estate, Media, Mental Health, MLS, NAR, Psychology, Remodeling, Decorating, Construction, Technology, Uncategorized, United States Government with 2 Comments

Thanks for visiting us at Tampa Real Estate News.  This is a blog developed by Realtors for Realtors, real estate agents and you, the general public.  We want you to feel free to express yourself here without worry for any political correctness.   We only ask that you keep it clean, truthful and within the confines of the NAR Code of Ethics (i.e., don’t badmouth other Realtors, etc.)  Hopefully we can share some insight into our local real estate, as well as our State and National Associations. Thanks for your participation.  Without you, there is nothing to say!

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Are stars finally aligning for Tampa Bay housing recovery?

by Deborah Farmer on January 18, 2012 in Economy, Local Real Estate with Comments Off

By Mark Puente, Times Staff Writer Wednesday, January 18, 2012

The worst may be over for Tampa Bay’s housing market.

The median price of a single-family home fell to $110,000 in
January 2011, climbed steadily to $130,000 in August and has not dropped below
$120,000 since.

“It’s a clear indication that we have felt the bottom
of the market,” said Kevin Chadwick, a 30-year Realtor and owner of six
Keller Williams offices with more than 400 agents in Tampa Bay. “The
market is in the process of turning.”

Craig Beggins agreed.

“I believe the market is turning,” said Beggins,
who owns Century 21 Beggins Enterprises in Apollo Beach, with more than 200
agents. “This is what we have been waiting for.”

Real estate experts and economists believe the figures point
to rising prices and increased sales, basing their optimism on the following:

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Obama to step up housing reform

by TampaRENews on January 16, 2012 in Economy, Local Real Estate, NAR, United States Government with Comments Off

January 16, 2012

WASHINGTON (UPI) — After a push from Democrats and liberal activists, President Barack Obama is expected to take a more aggressive stance to protect homeowners, backers say.”There’s an understanding now in the administration that there needs to be a comprehensive strategy to diminish the foreclosure rate and clean up the housing problem,” said Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass.Frank said although the economy is showing good movement, the Obama administration needs to do something about housing, The Hill reported Sunday.

“There’s a lot of conversation going on,” Frank said.

Wade Henderson, president of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, a leader in advocating for homeowner relief, said the administration is gearing up for action.

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Prediction: Magazine, TV ads on way out

by TampaRENews on January 15, 2012 in Economy, Issues, Media with Comments Off

January 15, 2012

ST. LOUIS (UPI) — Traditional advertising for products — magazine ads and 30-second television commercials — may go the way of the rotary phone, a U.S. researcher predicts.Seethu Seetharaman of Washington University in St. Louis said so-called crowdsourcing, viral Internet campaigns, product placements and guerrilla promotions will dominate the marketing and advertising landscape going forward.

“Traditional expensive advertising is no longer effective given all the clutter, as well as the emergence of technologies, like digital video recorders, that block the ads from even being viewed, much less absorbed, by consumers,” Seetharaman said in a statement.

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Medicaid opt-out possible

by TampaRENews on January 15, 2012 in Economy, Issues, United States Government with Comments Off

January 15, 2012

An issue that has received scant attention with all the uproar related to the individual mandate in the healthcare reform law is what will happen if a state decides against expanding Medicaid to comply with the law’s provisions.The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was signed into law nearly two years ago but will not be fully implemented until 2014.The U.S. Supreme Court takes up the law in March, with the major focus on the constitutionality of requiring people to buy at least minimal healthcare coverage.But another aspect of the case is whether the federal government can force states to expand Medicaid. Refusal would end a state’s participation in the program, cutting off federal funds for healthcare coverage for the poor.

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Color of Money ~ Reality Check on Investing

by TampaRENews on January 15, 2012 in Economy, Issues with Comments Off

Michelle Singletary

WASHINGTON — I often hear people say they can’t stomach investing anymore. And I understand.

They’re scared about losing their money. But in my experience, contributing to the poor returns some investors receive are the bad decisions they made because they panicked, because they were greedy or because they didn’t investigate their investment choice.

“I am more convinced than ever that all investment mistakes are really investor mistakes,” writes Carl Richards, a certified financial planner and founder of Prasada Capital Management, a portfolio design firm.

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The Nation’s Housing: Deductibility takes a hit …

by TampaRENews on January 14, 2012 in Economy, Issues, Local Real Estate, NAR, United States Government with Comments Off

Kenneth R. Harney

WASHINGTON — Though its demise drew little attention because of the partisan year-end brawl over the payroll tax cut extension in Congress, a key mortgage financing benefit disappeared at the end of December: The ability of large numbers of homebuyers and owners to write off the premiums they pay for mortgage insurance.

The loss of that tax deduction — plus mandatory new fees imposed by Congress on all new conventional and FHA loans — could effectively ratchet up the costs of homeownership this year.

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Tampa Bay home prices predicted to rise in 2012

by Deborah Farmer on January 11, 2012 in Economy, Florida Realtors, Issues, Local Real Estate with Comments Off

January 9, 2012

Mark Puente, Times Staff Writer

Home prices in Tampa Bay are predicted to improve 7.4 percent this year, according to a California firm’s report.

This year may bring an end to the starring role Tampa Bay and Florida have played in the national housing crisis.

Home prices in four Sunshine State metro areas are predicted to improve more than most other regions in the country, according to a Clear Capital report released today.

The California-based housing valuation and analytics firm sees a 7.4 percent home price increase in Tampa Bay in 2012, which would make it sixth in the nation in terms of predicted price improvement.

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Raskin Urges Penalties on Mortgage Servicers

by TampaRENews on January 8, 2012 in Economy, Issues, Local Real Estate, Media, United States Government with Comments Off
Published: January 7, 2012 at 4:35 PM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Federal Reserve Governor Sarah Bloom Raskin on Saturday said the Fed must impose monetary penalties on banks who entered into an April agreement with regulators over how to fix problems in their mortgage servicing businesses.
“The Federal Reserve and other federal regulators must impose penalties for deficiencies that resulted in unsafe and unsound practices or violations of federal law,” Raskin said in remarks to the Association of American Law Schools. “The Federal Reserve believes monetary sanctions in these cases are appropriate and plans to announce monetary penalties.”

Fed: Mortgage servicers have ‘problems’

by TampaRENews on January 8, 2012 in Economy, Issues, Media with Comments Off

WASHINGTON (UPI) — Mortgage servicers are preventing the U.S. government from fixing the broken housing market and consequently the economy, a Federal Reserve official said.

Sarah Bloom Raskin, a Federal Reserve governor, called mortgage servicers’ practices “sloppy and deceptive,” The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.

It is necessary “that the severe misconduct that has been uncovered in the mortgage servicing sector be addressed through intensified public enforcement of the law as part of the overarching effort to rebuild our damaged communities and neighborhoods,” Raskin told a conference of the Association of American Law Schools.

Servicers are responsible for collecting payments on mortgages but aren’t necessarily the ones who grant the mortgage and hold it, the newspaper said.

Raskin said federal regulators have found 14 of the largest mortgage servicers have “significant problems,” including forged promissory notes, erroneous fees and illegal foreclosure actions.

“The Federal Reserve and other federal regulators must impose penalties for deficiencies that resulted in unsafe and unsound practices,” she said.

Copyright 2012 by United Press International

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