% Change Single Family Homes Broward

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1 December 2009 Newsletter Sean Greco Realtor, CIPS, CDPE, CLHMS, GREEN Certified, TRC, REOS Designations and Certifications are explained at the end of the newsletter Buy the Beach Realty, Cell , buybeach.com Hello from South Florida, Below are brief summaries on key issues that have an effect on South Florida Real Estate, followed by the target market specific data. Click here for graphs of the data to help analyze trends in the market place. Please make note of the trends and data points as this will be key in timing the purchase or sale of a property to your benefit. Also, it is more important than ever that you understand the incentives that might end up being the deciding factor for those whom have been thinking about buying for quite some time. EXISTING HOME SALES FOR OCTOBER FOR MIAMI DADE AND BROWARD COUNTIES: Single Family Homes Miami Dade % Change Single Family Homes Broward % Change Sales % Sales % Price $246,800 $178,500 28% Price $252,500 $211,600 16% Inventory 16,129 8,743 46% Inventory 13,233 6,701 49% Condos Miami Dade Condos Broward Sales % Sales % Price $197,400 $138,400 30% Price $115,200 $83,200 28% Inventory 23,836 16,879 29% Inventory 18,056 11,842 34% Source: The Miami Herald 11/24/2009, FAR, EWM The Standard & Poor s/case Shiller home price index of 20 major cities rose 0.3 percent to in September, the fourth straight monthly increase. The seasonally adjusted index is now up more than 3 percent from its bottom in May, but still 30 percent below its April 2006 peak. The index for South Florida inched up 0.5 percent between the second and third quarters. Case Shiller measures home prices in Miami Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties by examining repeat sales of the same homes. Another reading of home prices by the Federal Housing Finance Agency held steady from August to September. The FHFA index measures home prices from mortgages acquired by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Source: The Miami Herald 11/25/09 HOME SELLERS KEEP ON CUTTING PRICES & EXISTING HOME SALES HIT 2 YEAR HIGH: U.S. home sellers with properties on the market as of Nov. 1 had slashed asking prices by $28.1 billion as they sought to attract buyers, Trulia Inc. said. The average discount was 10 percent, little changed from a month earlier, the San Francisco based, real estate data provider said 11/11/09. Sales of existing U.S. homes increased 11 percent to a two year high in the third quarter according to the National Association of Realtors, which released this information on 11/10/09. Source: The Miami Herald 11/12/09, Trulia Inc., NAR

2 As opportunities continue to present themselves, please contact me should you want to seriously discuss in more detail distressed sales of multiple units. This market presents unique opportunities that very well may never be seen again in one s lifetime. Please let me help you take advantage of this situation. I have many strategic relationships with the decision makers regarding distressed projects. QUICK HEADLINES: The FHA recently announced more lenient underwriting guidelines for condo projects, in an attempt to jump start the financing of condos; this should benefit the South Florida condo market. Source: The Miami Herald 11/11/09 46 percent of homeowners, representing 387,157 homes, were underwater at the end of September 30, compared to 47 percent in the second quarter, according to a new report from Web based real estate services firm Zillow.com. Source: The Miami Herald 11/10/09 Royal Caribbean International s new $1.4 billion Oasis of the Seas is offering a dizzying array of entertainment and activities to attract first time cruisers and cruise veterans and to dispel the notion that cruises are sedentary vacations. It is the largest, longest, tallest, widest and most expensive cruise ship ever built. The ship will be in Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale. Source: The Miami Herald 11/16/09 Miami commissioners passed the city s most comprehensive zoning code ever one that promises a healthier city and friendlier walking corridors. It was passed 10/22/09 with a 4 1 vote, and is called Miami 21. Source: The Miami Herald 10/23/09 BUYER TAX CREDIT EXTENDED AND OPEN TO MORE BUYERS: The tax credit for $8,000 that does not need to be repaid, is for those purchasing a principal residence on or after 1/1/09 and was just recently extended to signing a purchase agreement by April 30 of 2010 and closing by June 30 of Buyers who have owned their current homes at least 5 years would be eligible for tax credits of up to $6,500. First time home buyers or anyone who hasn t owned a home in the last 3 years would still get up to $8,000. There are income limits and other guidelines, of which the below website will help you better understand. Or you can contact your accountant for more specific details. Source: The below chart is data from the past 90 days for Condominiums, ending 11/30/09. The data is taken from South East Florida s Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for the cities and townships of Miami Beach (South Beach, Mid Beach, & North Beach), Surfside, Bal Harbour, Bay Harbor Islands, and Fisher Island. The paragraph below the data will explain in more detail what is included in this analysis. Please don t hesitate to pose any questions you may have, or simply give me a call or send me an to discuss Real Estate in general. This data will help to analyze market conditions from month to month. Price Range Active Closed Listings % Listing % Sold Avg DOM Average Discount New vs Resale $0 - $199, % 15.78% 119 8% 3 vs. 145 $200,000 - $249, % 8.56% 138 1% 8 vs. 17 $250,000 - $299, % 12.26% 141 9% 6 vs. 32 $300,000 - $349, % 10.60% 115 8% 11 vs. 12 $350,000 - $399, % 12.27% % 17 vs. 16 $400,000 - $499, % 12.86% % 15 vs. 21 $500,000 - $599, % 13.33% 175 9% 20 vs. 14 $600,000 - $699, % 12.22% 182 9% 15 vs. 7 $700,000 - $799, % 6.36% 160 8% 7 vs. 0 $800,000 - $899, % 4.40% % 3 vs. 1 $900,000 - $1,179, % 8.00% % 10 vs. 2 $1,180,000 - $1,399, % 8.18% % 7 vs. 2

3 $1,400,000 - $1,799, % 12.04% % 13 vs. 0 $1,800,000 - $2,199, % 5.56% % 4 vs. 0 $2,200,000 - $2,699, % 5.19% % 3 vs. 1 $2,700,000 - $3,199, % 8.70% % 2 vs. 2 $3,200,000 - $3,999, % 8.33% % 4 vs. 0 $4,000,000 - $4,999, % 10.81% % 3 vs. 1 $5,000, % 1.56% % 1 vs. 0 Totals: % 11.63% % 152 vs. 273 As you can see, I have broken the data into price ranges, and then you can see the amount of Active condos for sale, how many Real Buyers Closed on a condo for sale, how many of those listing agreements unsold, then further calculated what percent of the Active condos for sale and Sold. Then I calculated the Average Days on Market (Avg DOM), which is the amount of days it took the condos that sold to obtain a Real Buyer. Then I show the Average Discount, which is the percentage the Listed Price was discounted to the Actual Sale Price for all Closed Sales. The last column is for Closed Sales that were newer construction, which I considered to be anything built after 1995, versus older buildings built before I track this data for Condominiums and Single Family Homes separately due to their differences. I also track the data for the more luxurious buildings of South Beach, please feel free to or call for that data. The next set of data below is the same information for Single Family Homes. The one difference is that the last column is the Average Age of the homes Sold. Listings % Listing Avg DOM Average Discount Price Range Active Closed % Sold $0 - $399, % 47.62% 116 6% 1946 $400,000 - $499, % 18.18% 167 8% 1949 $500,000 - $649, % 14.29% 59 7% 1946 $650,000 - $799, % 8.33% % 1945 $800,000 - $999, % 4.76% % 1942 $1,000,000 - $1,299, % 15.56% % 1940 $1,300,000 - $1,599, % 2.78% 27 11% 1960 $1,600,000 - $1,999, % 6.38% % 1968 $2,000,000 - $2,999, % 8.45% % 1964 $3,000,000 - $3,999, % 0.00% n/a n/a n/a $4,000,000 - $4,999, % 0.00% n/a n/a n/a $5,000,000 - $5,999, % 6.67% 87 15% 1933 $6,000,000 - $6,999, % 8.33% % 1933 $7,000,000 - $9,999, % 4.76% 94 16% 1937 $10,000, % 6.45% % 2006 Totals: % 10.87% % 1951 Average Age Don t forget to look at the overall data I have been collecting and determine for yourself what trends, etc. you see; please click here to take you to some graphs that should prove to be very insightful: If you are a bargain hunter looking for distressed properties, please contact me so that I may setup an automatic short sale or foreclosure search notification for you. I have found that the best deals usually go the quickest, and to be proactive in your distressed property search is the best way to go about finding a bargain. In the course of continually researching and familiarizing myself with the inventory of the very localized market in which I practice, along with the banking relationships I have cultivated, I have been able to do a lot of the research and legwork recognizing the best potential values in my target markets, or in some instances in other specific buildings or locations where there is

4 excellent value for the product. Please understand that this service I provide adds significant value to the process, and only contact me if you are serious about buying and planning to be loyal. Please don t hesitate to contact me directly for any such information. ECONOMISTS SAY THE WORST IS OVER: David Wyss, chief economist for Standard & Poor s, the credit rating agency, told the annual gathering of the Latin American Federation of Banks that the worst is over for the longest and deepest recession since the 1930s. Douglas Smith, chief economist for the Americas for Standard Chartered Bank a large international bank headquartered in London added that 2009 has shaped up better than expected for Latin American countries and the outlook going forward is considerably better. The 43 rd Annual Assembly of the Latin American Federation of Banks, which represents more than 500 financial institutions from Latin America, met at the Intercontinental Hotel in downtown Miami during the middle of November. The conference brings together some 1,400 people from 50 countries as far away as China, India, Australia and Singapore. Next year, the annual gathering is set to be held in Punta del Este, Uruguay. David Wyss also mentioned that the Chinese will be vital in the coming economic recovery with the Chinese having to live up to their means as Americans learn to live within their means. With the Federal Reserve likely to keep interest rates low to foster a recovery, the U.S. dollar will remain weak, said Smith. As a result, Smith expects a lot of talk from policymakers in Latin American nations about steps that will ease the strength of their own currencies. Source: The Miami Herald 11/17/09 SEPTEMBER CONDO SALES DATA FOR THE STATE OF FLORIDA: The Florida Association of Realtors said September condo sales rose 77 percent statewide from a year ago. It was a 9 percent climb from August, with about 5,000 units changing hands. The median price for the one year period is down by one third to $102,500. All but one of the state's metropolitan areas showed a gain in condo sales, and a majority of those have posted increased sales for 15 consecutive months. Source: GlobeSt, Florida Association of Realtors UNITED NATIONS OF BUYERS: In order to help his clients close on units at the luxury St. Tropez condominium in Sunny Isles Beach, developer Joe Milton recently put up $100 million of his company s cash to set up a mortgage company to fund loans. Sixty percent of our buyers are foreign, yet there are no loans being made to foreign nationals, said Milton, president and chief executive of J. Milton & Associates in Coral Gables. International buyers are activating this market and reactivating sales, said Jenny Huertas, the international sales director for Condo Vultures, a Bal Harbour based brokerage and consultancy. There has been a growing caravan of real estate professionals trekking to Latin America and elsewhere to recruit new investors as the South Florida real estate market has caught the attention of global buyers who may have once considered U.S. real estate out of reach. A weak dollar is also giving them an edge. The Swiss, Spanish, groups from Italy and England who already own some stuff down here are seeing it as a good time to buy, leveraging the economy and the currency effect, said Mike Lapointe, vice president of Baybridge Capital Advisors in Miami. Investors are aware that assets have never before been so depreciated in a country like America, said Gabriela Guimaraes, a partner with Integra Solutions, a Miami real estate consultancy that advises mostly Brazilian nationals. Walter Defortuna, chairman of Fortune International Realty, said that for the first time in his 30 year career it s cheaper to buy an apartment in Miami than major Latin American cities, such as Buenos Aires, Mexico City and large cities in Brazil. They are buying for the long term. There is no speculating for the short term, he said.

5 South Florida s appeal remains strong among foreign jet setters, who are drawn to the beachfront metropolis as much for its palm trees and fine weather as its United Nations like cultural inclusivity. Almost one in four foreign sales in Florida this year has taken place in the Miami Fort Lauderdale Miami Beach area, according to a July survey conducted for the Florida Association of Realtors. South Florida was the most popular Florida market for Canadians, Latin Americans and Western Europeans, excluding Brits, who tend to prefer the Orlando Kissimmee area, according to the survey. Latin Americans, not surprisingly, made up 52 percent of foreign buyers, with the next highest category being Europeans, who comprised 26 percent. The top countries of origin among South Florida s foreign buyers are Venezuela, Argentina and Canada. More than half of these buyers are paying all cash. Bernardo Manrique, a Venezuelan expatriate who owns Miami Realty Partners in Doral, says South Florida tends to benefit whether its closest neighboring nations are doing well or poorly economically and politically. Miami is a place that all people from Latin America find really nice. If Latin America is getting worse because of the economic conditions, Miami is the option. If Latin America is getting better and people are making money and economies are good, then Miami is an option, Manrique said. A strong Brazilian economy, for instance, is piquing Brazilians interest in residential and commercial properties for longterm investments, said Paulo de Melo, a partner at Integra Solutions, a full service real estate advisory firm that caters primarily to Brazilians. They know they have to diversify investments and diversify their exposure out of Brazil a bit. They feel the growth is sustainable, but they know they have to hedge their bets. Venezuelans, on the other hand, are concerned with political instability and safety issues in the capital Caracas, said Manrique. In Israel and Spain, high real estate prices are driving investors to hunt for bargains for income producing commercial and residential properties. Dizengoff Trading Group, an Israeli real estate development and commodities firm, recently expanded to South Florida for that reason. It plans to target shopping centers and half sold condo communities. In all, the firm plans to invest $100 million. It s like 10 years [of] salary to achieve buying a condo there [Czech Republic, Austria, Romania], but here today, with the prices so low, it s about 2 years of salary, which is very good, Ronen Rubin said. Rubin, who primarily handles commercial real estate sales for mostly Israeli investors, said he recently had to hire a Hebrew speaking real estate agent to deal with a new swell of Israeli residential buyers. Foreign buyers these days are also looking for an added return on their investments. Developers are taking advantage of a little before used visa program that makes it easier for them to get green cards when they invest between $500,000 and $1 million in projects that create jobs for U.S. workers (click here for more details on this program, and the pilot program currently running). Source: The Miami Herald 11/2/2009 PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR THE 2009 PROFILE OF INTERNATIONAL HOME BUYERS IN FLORIDA PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR A RETIREMENT VISA STUDY FROM APRIL 2009: Please me for contact information of an Immigration Attorney that specializes in various types of Visa programs. PROPERTY TAXES & INSURANCE: As a property owner or potential property owner, I urge you to keep up to date on the various progress, legislation, and proposed legislation in order to help you better understand how these important issues affect you; please see the below link that will take you to the Florida Association of Realtors Legislative Center, which will help to explain the numerous moving parts concerning these issues:

6 INTEREST RATES & RELATED NEWS: It is important to note that different types of loans are pegged to different rates, so please make sure to stay in touch with your mortgage broker or banker to keep up to date on interest rates, as this can directly affect many Real Estate related decisions. In addition to the lowered rate when securing a mortgage to buy property, another common question you will see with rates near historic lows is whether or not it is a good idea to refinance. This discussion might be a good one to have with a reputable mortgage broker or your banker and see if this would make sense financially. Or feel free to visit my website and the Mortgage Center for more helpful information. This is the website to the Federal Reserve s Monetary Policy section: Exchange rates play a vital role in Real Estate related decisions for foreign buyers or sellers, a good source to track currency exchange rates is: I hope this finds you well and looking forward to comparing this month s data with last month s data to spot trends and decide for yourself the status of the local Real Estate market, of which I work within 24/7. You are receiving this because we have been in touch about Real Estate here in the South Florida area, most likely property at the Beach. As you read the newsletter from month to month it will contain data that will help you to analyze market conditions. In addition, it is an unobtrusive way to stay in touch with you regarding my Real Estate Consulting Services. That is all for this month s newsletter and I welcome suggestions, feedback, and of course I am here if you or anyone you know is thinking of buying or selling property here in South Florida. If you wish to further discuss any of the above issues in more detail, or any other Real Estate related topics, please don t hesitate to call or . I would like to leave you with the following quote by Thomas Jefferson: Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude DESIGNATIONS AND CERTIFICATIONS: These Designations and Certifications were specifically chosen by me to give my effort, time, and money, as well as meeting the required experience because I feel that this shows my dedication to continually learning and evolving as a Real Estate Consultant. Plus, the market that I practice in is a natural one to achieve such designations to separate myself from the other professionals within my field. Keep in mind these not only prove education but also transactional experience in order to obtain the designations and certifications. Realtor Membership in the largest professional association known as the National Association of Realtors or N.A.R. C.I.P.S. Certified International Property Specialist, member of CIPS network; Designation shows education and transactional experience in the International Arena of Real Estate. C.D.P.E. Certified Distressed Property Expert, member of Distressed Property Institute; Designation shows education and experience in the continually evolving and complicated short sale and foreclosure markets. C.L.H.M.S. Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist, member of Million Dollar Guild; Designation shows education and transactional experience in the top tier level within my market, Million Dollar Guild is the highest level of membership with proven experience in numerous $1M+ transactions. GREEN Certified also known as GCREP GL, Green Certified Real Estate Professional Green Leadership; Certification shows education and leadership within the Green Real Estate Industry.

7 T.R.C. Transnational Referral Certification; Certification shows education in researching Real Estate throughout the world and allows me to refer and to be referred from 28 International Real Estate Organizations in the Global marketplace. R.E.O.S. Real Estate Owned Specialist, shows extensive experience and knowledge in the distressed property class known as REO, also known as foreclosures or bank owned properties. If you wish to be removed from this mailing list, please REPLY to this placing REMOVE in the subject line.