Market Value for Townhouse in Blue Mt. Beach?

[FoX]

Not so...it "was" for the last couple of years a seller's market, now the shoe is on the other foot. Sellers are panicing if their properties are sitting on the market for over a WEEK!! (eeeeck!)

IMO real estate has already topped and leveled and now will begin to creep down. Buyers are beginning to realize this (Toll Brothers blinked today too) and dreading buyer's remorse, buyers will be slow to pull the trigger as more properties enter the market. The well-placed homes will pretty much retain their values; the well-placed condos will trickle down a bit; but the lots and high-rise condos (many in the hands of speculators who are experiencing tightness in their chests and night sweats) are, however, gonna get ugly.

What evidence is there of sellers "panicking"? I will assume that even though you can't spell it, you do know what it means.

And don't insult our intelligence by giving us an example of a seller reducing the price of an overpriced property. That does not indicate panic. Just that someone is willing to sell at a fair market price.

Buyer's remorse is not something dreaded beforehand. It is a post-purchase condition. I guess what you mean is that buyers are concerned with paying too much for a property. A good appraiser and realtor will help out there.

 

[Franny]

:clap_1:

What evidence is there of sellers "panicking"? I will assume that even though you can't spell it, you do know what it means.

And don't insult our intelligence by giving us an example of a seller reducing the price of an overpriced property. That does not indicate panic. Just that someone is willing to sell at a fair market price.

Buyer's remorse is not something dreaded beforehand. It is a post-purchase condition. I guess what you mean is that buyers are concerned with paying too much for a property. A good appraiser and realtor will help out there.

 

[Landloc]

For you that know of Mirasol Townhomes or are in the area and stay tapped into new developments and developer activities, are there any rumors floating around about Mirasol. Just with these units being a bit dated and new homes that have been sold right in front of them selling for 1M++ it seems like this plot of land might be prime real estate (so close to water) for a developer to swoop in and buy everyone out. From my research, most that own in Mirasol have so for YEARS and bought for a fraction of what they are offering today. Guess I'm a bit concerned about a buy when a developer might be hot on the trail of a buyout of these units. The early owners will walk with a nice chunk of change. Later buyers...(say folks that payed 385K-550K) they might not do so well??

Your thoughts

 

[Mermaid]

Arithmetic will tell you that those that paid less will benefit more should there be a buyout. A developer would offer the same price for everyone for identical units, wouldn't you think? Not a buy out figure based on original price paid for unit.

 

[Paula]

I would be sure the place was built according to some of the newer hurricane codes. Also, as my accountant told us, remember that the value of the place is in the increase in the value of the property, not rental income. We rent out our two cottages and it's great to have the extra income, but we certainly can't count on the rentals to pay all the bills for the cottages (but it definitely helps). So, you'll want to be sure to get a place that is not too much of a stretch financially so that you can enjoy it and not worry too much about it during the leaner rental periods such as fall/winter, as well as when hurricanes hit and people cancel their trips.

We're in the Seacrest area and love that part of town. We rarely go to Destin, though, but we do drive toward Panama City Beach off season to go to a few places (e.g., Dusty's for inexpensive oysters at happy hour). We'll drive to Grayton beach once or twice during the week but otherwise don't go much farther than Seagrove. There's great Carvel ice cream at the Villages of South Walton now so we tend to make a trip there just about every night when we're in town. Mostly, we hang out at the porch, pool, and beach.

 

[DBOldford]

For what it is worth, I think FSBO is a highly overrated concept. Most sellers abandon this idea soon after putting their signs up and their ads in the newspaper. The realtors work really hard for the commissions they make (and have to share). The seller gets far better exposure by listing with a good broker. And people buying from a FSBO always seem to expect the commission and then some in savings, making low offers. Most people who try FSBO end up eventually listing their property with an agent, but often after it has languished on the market for far too long. Your realtor handles an awful lot of headaches and does a lot of problem solving that you, the seller, usually never hear about. As Tina says, "They works hard for they money!" Baby needs new flip-flops.

People expecting to cover the costs of today's purchases prices and expenses via seasonal rentals are in Dreamland. Rental income can make a big dent in expenses and, if you bought early enough and have a flexible financing plan, can even translate into a break even sceneario so that you can take the tax advantages now rather than waiting until you sell the property. However, taxes and insurance and utilities are going up significantly. And if you are talking condos or homeowners' associations, be sure to check out those fees and the rate schedule for increases. A well informed buyer should take all these factors into consideration. I am constantly amazed at how many buyers do not look into property taxes (based on new sales prices) and zoning before they leap.

And finally, beware the listing agent who is focused on racking up the listings and then waiting for some other hustler to do all the heaving lifting. Good luck. Blue Mountain is a beautiful community, a great location for enjoying a lot of places along 30A.

 

[Paula]

Donna,

What do you mean by "take the tax advantages now rather than wait until you sell the property"? We have two cottages that we rent out that we bought before prices went up so much (but not early enough to actually break even yet on rentals). So, I'm curious about the tax implications of different scenarios. We don't plan to sell for decades (maybe not even in my lifetime), but it's good to know the different tax scenarios. I could ask my accountant, but that question would probably cost me about $200...

Thanks!

 

[DBOldford]

Hi, Paula...Any investment (as in rental) property that has a negative cash flow cannot be depreciated on your current tax returns. The cumulative advantage comes when you sell the property only. However, if you can show even a slightly positive cash flow you can take the depreciation now. Although we purchased our home before prices skyrocketed, we still had to do some creative stuff to make it work. Our CPA was very helpful with this. We refinanced into a mortgage that has an option of paying interest only. This brought the payments way down. The property has/continues to appreciate sufficiently that an interest only payment is not risky and actually helps us now. Mind you, we'd never have an interest only mortgage on our primary residence. Most years, we end up with a slightly positive cash flow and the tax advantage is more important to us now than it would be years from now if/when we sell. We will probably be completely retired by then, with somewhat lower annual income.

The mortage we obtained was great, low interest and you quality exclusively based upon your credit rating.