The bubble in central Florida turned and as turning out to be just a balloon that is having the air let out of it slowly... there was not a burst bubble, but an easing of prices in most parts of the area.... the inventory of homes on the market has changed from about 5,000  a couple of years  ago to over 26,000 now...... buyers are more picky and do not feel so rushed about finding a home they will love to live in for the next 5-9 years.   In order for homes to sell they must be in move in condition and priced slightly below market value. Where homes had multiple offers within a couple of day before, now they are sitting for more than  6 months  before they are  Inventory is definately up substantially and homes, especially the high end are staying on the market for a long time.  Prices so far remain steady.  What has happened is that sellers have unrealistic expectations on what their home is worth.  We have been able to get people into homes by being creative.  For example, having the seller "buy down" the interest rate for the buyer.  A great product for this is the two-one buydown mortgage.  You effectively buy down the first year by 2% and the second year by 1%.  Cost the seller 2 1/2 points.  Bottom line is that those agents who work with creative loan officers are finding a way to make the deal work in the current environment. Karen Arbutine Re/Max Central Realty.

07/18/2006 by David Shafer