Lakeland Real Estate Blog by Petra

Looking for a good auto body and paint shop here in Lakeland Florida?

When roads are slick, caution must be taken when driving a car.  When the beautiful Florida sun is setting in front of your eyes while driving, caution must be taken when driving a car. 

Fender bender happens every day.

January 1^st, well 2^nd started out with a bang!  I drove with my daughters and grandkids to the Orlando outlet mall shopping and had a wonderful time.  As we were leaving the outlet mall the sun was setting and traffic was backed up leading to a major road – bumper to bumper traffic.  Needless to say, someone hit me in the rear, nothing major but it was obvious my car had bumper damage. 

I was in need of a local body and paint shop in Lakeland, Florida.

About a couple of weeks later, the check from the insurance company came in and I drove to my local body shop set up an appointment with Meisner Paint & Body in Lakeland, Florida.  Dean Brown of Meisner Paint & Body, Inc. checked out my car and the insurance adjuster’s estimation of repair. Dean explained to me that there were some parts and labor missing left out of the adjuster's estimated write up, nothing major. We set up the appointment to bring in my car and he assured me that he would call the insurance adjuster about the items that were left out.

Dean kept me updated throughout the process and when an extra day was needed because Meisner Paint & Body ordered clamps to fasten my bumper that had not come in, an extra day for my car to be there was required.

When I picked up the car, I was very impressed with the work they have done and the service they provided.  Although my bumper on my 12 year old car was repaired, it looked like as it was a brand new bumper. 

Job Well Done! Meisner Paint & Body Shop is located on 925 N Massachusetts Ave., Lakeland, Florida 33801 and deserves a gold star.

Are distressed homeowners making the right decision by walking away?

One of the most talked about subject you read or watch on television today is the housing crisis.  Homeowners walking away from their homes they can no longer afford.  As I was reading an article titled: “To walk or not to walk: underwater homeowners face dilemma”, I asked myself what I would do when faced with the decision of walking away.

The rise in foreclosure filings were first blamed on mortgage fraud and predatory lending practices. That is not the only case any longer.  Here in Florida, folks are faced with lay off’s resulting in double digit unemployment rates and now folks who still have a job, like my husband are faced with less than 40 hours work week reducing their income by 20% or more.  

My parents never owned a home and when my husband and I purchased our home it was our American dream. When we signed the promissory note that states: “I promise to pay” we and most homeowners here in the United States have good intentions to keep this promise.  However, unexpected circumstances such as job loss, divorce, illness, reduced income, relocation, business failure or even death of a spouse can derail the promise once made.

I want to point out that I’m not an attorney and the tips outlined below are for informational purposes and not legal advice.  Please seek the advice from a qualified finance, tax, and legal professionals.

I am a real estate agent working with homeowners every day who are faced with this dilemma educating myself regularly by taking classes, talking with fellow real estate agents and researching available options.  I’m also a homeowner asking myself this very same question, “to walk or not to walk”.

Would I walk away?

Assuming there is a job loss or an enormous reduction in our income. I would not walk away from my home, at least not as a first step!  I have to live somewhere. Making a budget should be the first thing a homeowner should do not only when faced with such a decision but on a regular basis.  People are stunned when they discover they can have an extra $100-$200 a month by eliminating going out to dinner, reducing their cable bill, installing a few energy efficient items to reduce their light bill, and reducing their cell phone bill.

Walking away from your home will result in foreclosure. It will definitely hurt your credit rating by as much as 200-300 points and you will not be able to get another mortgage for number of years.  

What would I do?

First of all, each homeowner has to make the decision by themselves and at their own best interest and while each homeowner’s situation is different here are the steps I would take: 

• I would not ignore the letters from my lender - I would call them immediately explaining my situation and take notes of the conversation.
• I would try to work out an arrangement with my lender – For example, forbearance may be considered by the lender, if a new job is in sight, upcoming bonus or a tax refund.  Tell the lender about it and ask if you could make a partial payment, skip payments and tell them about your plan to catch up.
• I would seek professional legal and financial advice – each homeowner’s situation is different and therefore I strongly recommend that you seek the counsel of an attorney and accountant experienced in foreclosure and bankruptcy.
• If my lender would ignore, not communicate or decline my plea to a workout - I would try to sell my home as a Short Sale.  While the time of a Short Sale process can be long and stressful for the homeowner, the buyer and their Realtors®, they do get approved!

Despite all of the suggestion you hear from relatives or friends, read in the newspaper and online or watch on television; it is ultimately your decision and should be based on educating yourself, your options and discussion with family members. 

Would you walk away?

Update for the Lakeland FL real estate market! There are 1912 homes for sale throughout Lakeland, Florida – as of 03/09/10. The inventory of Lakeland homes for sale in the past few months hovers around 1900. Newly listed homes for the period of February 16^th through February 28^th decreased to 135 Lakeland homes for sale. The average sales price of Lakeland homes listed with area Realtors® increased to $165,281 from my previous report.

The types of homes and average prices for sale in Lakeland, Florida according to the Multiple Listing Services (MLS) are as follows:

4 duplex units with a sales price of $138,425

4 condos listed with an average sales price of $61,325

10 mobile homes listed with an average sales price of $56,310

4Townhomes/Villas listed with an average sales price of $177,587

113 single family homes with an average price of $179,119

Lakeland’s newest homes listed! The priciest home on the market in Lakeland is a 2006 Hulbert custom built estate with pool features 5 bedrooms and 4 2½ baths with over 5,100 square feet of living space. This home is located in the Christina community and is offered at $1,899,000.  On the contrary, the cheapest Lakeland home newly listed is a bank owned 3 bedrooms 2baths home listed for $16,400 – just over $12.00 per square foot – located in the Albert Park subdivision.

For more detailed information of where the homes are located and more, please continue to read by clicking this link

Lakeland Harrison School for the Arts presents “The Three Musketeers”

Did you miss this wonderful play of Micah Ariel James adaptations of Dumas’ renowned novel of “The Three Musketeers” this past weekend?

Great reviews of past performances! At last weekend’s almost sold out performances and raving reviews by patrons, you sure don’t want to miss this exciting production of “The Three Musketeers” that is being showcased by the Harrison School for the Arts’ talented group of theater students.

For another weekend, you are encouraged to see this performance in the new Black Box Theatre located on 750 Lakeland Hollingsworth Drive, Lakeland Florida 33801 on Friday, March 12^th @ 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, March 13^th @ 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinee, March 14^th, 2010 @ 2:00 p.m.

Under the direction of Ilene Fins, Dean of Harrison's Theatre Department, "The Three Musketeers" explodes onto the Harrison stage with fast and furious duels in the dangerous streets of Paris! James' version of this classic story follows the renowned adventures of country bumpkin d'Artagnan as he seeks entry into the prestigious King's Musketeers.  Together they fight with courage to combat the malicious cardinal and save France.

 
"All for One and One for All!"  Chock full of political intrigue, romance and exciting sword battles, this world premiere is not to be missed. En garde!

The troupe is lead by Britt Michael Gordon as d'Artagnan, Corinne Townsend as Aramis, Lance Taylor as Porthos, Amelia Marler as Athos, Demonte Cheeks as Treville, Justin Nipper as Bonacieux, Katie Ward as the Queen, Erika Williams as DeWinter, Jenna Creamer as Rochefort, Kevin List as the King, Chris Holseth as the Cardinal, Brooke Dixon as Constance,and Nicole Richard as the Innkeeper, with Courtney Lang, Beth Rousseau, Camila Araujo, and Annie Jaynes as the Fight Corps.

 
Seating is very limited and I encourage buying tickets online at www.harrisonarts.com

 Pictures are courtesy of Andy Glowgower of Andy Glowgower Photography

Mark your calendar for these upcoming performances of The Harrison Fine Arts Series for 2009/10:

The Three Musketeers

Friday, March 12, 2010 - Saturday, March 13, 2010 at 7:30 PM in the Black Box Theatre

Sunday, March 14, at 2:00 PM

Harrison Wind Ensemble Concert - Tuesday, March 16, 2010 at 7:30 PM

Chamber Music Concert - Thursday, March 25, 2010 at 7:30 PM

Piano Concert - Thursday, April 08, 2010 at 7:30 PM

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

Friday, April 23, 2010 - Saturday, April 24, 2010 at 7:30 PM

Sunday, April 25, at 2:00 PM

Idealistic Notions, Professional Visual Arts Exhibit

Friday, April 23, 2010 - Wednesday, June 09, 2010

Reception at 6:00 PM

String Orchestra Concert - Monday, April 26, 2010 First United Methodist Church, Lakeland at 7:30 PM

Spring Dance Concert - Friday, May 07, 2010 - Saturday, May 08, 2010 at 7:30 PM

Symphony Orchestra Concert - Thursday, May 13, 2010 at 7:30 PM

CAVEAT EMPTOR - Lakeland Short Sale buyers and sellers be aware that Bank of America still don't have their act together.  A true story and an eye opener for everyone who is involved in Short Sales.

This goes right along with an article I read in my local newspaper about a homeowner being foreclosed on their home despite owning the home free and clear.

Polk County Existing Home Sales for January 2010

Slow start of the overall Polk County Home Sales in January when comparing sales history for the past year. Although average Polk County home prices have somewhat been stable in recent months, the number of homes sold in Polk County took a nose dive when comparing the number of sales from the past few months. If you are a person that is visual like me, just take a look at the chart below to see what I’m talking about.  Please keep in mind, the figures reflect all homes as indicated below, not just single family homes you see in media reports.

500 existing homes sold – a decrease of 21% from the previous month (636 sold homes) in Polk County – an increase in sales activity of 111 Polk County homes sold from the previous year. Overall Polk’s median price for existing homes decreased by 1 ¾% from the previous month to $97,950, however remained almost the same from the previous year of $98,000.

Take a look at the city you live in and see what the numbers are for January 2010 for existing home sales – single family homes, condominiums, manufactured homes, duplex, villas, and townhomes -including distressed properties in Polk County. Please take note only sales recorded by Realtors® are taken into account. The source for this data is Mid-Florida Regional MLS Service, it is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

City                        Average Sold Price          Median Sold Price    # of Homes Sold

Let me break down January 2010 Polk County existing homes sales into various categories:

• 447 Single family homes, townhomes, villas and ½ duplex – median sold price $103,000 – 148 Average Days to Closing
• 19 Condominiums – median sold price – $65,000 – 149 Average Days on Closing
• 34 Modular, manufactured/mobile homes in park/out of park – median sold price $56,500 – 233 Average Days to Closing

Let’s take a look at the distressed Polk County real estate market!

There were 183 existing homes sold, not categorized as distressed properties, at a median sold price of $130,000 with 206 average days to closing, which counted for almost 37% of our total sales. The distressed properties however; which includes Bank owned, pre-foreclosure, in foreclosure and short sales counted for 63% of our total sales in Polk County for the month of January.

• 234 sold homes were Bank Owned – median price $79,450 – Average Days to Closing  81
• 83 sold homes were Short Sales – median price $102,000 – Average Days to Closing 247

Update for the Lakeland FL real estate market! There are 1923 homes for sale throughout Lakeland, Florida – as of 02/19/10. While Lakeland homes inventory remains stable, newly listed homes for the period of February 1^st through February 15^th increased by 16.75% to 203 Lakeland homes for sale. The average sales price of Lakeland homes listed with area Realtors® increased to $165,715 from my previous report.

The types of homes and average prices for sale in Lakeland, Florida according to the Multiple Listing Services (MLS) are as follows:

3 duplex units with a sales price of $48,267

6 condos listed with an average sales price of $141,417

18 mobile homes listed with an average sales price of $62,678

5 Townhomes/Villas listed with an average sales price of $107,440

171 single family homes with an average price of $181,178

Lakeland’s newest homes listed! The priciest and also currently the most expensive home on the market in Lakeland is this 2008 McQuillen custom built pool home which features 6 bedrooms and 5 ½ baths with over 6,700 square feet of living space of the main house and is located in the Crescent Woods community. Its current list price is $2,100,000.  On the contrary, the cheapest Lakeland home newly listed is a HUD bank owned 2 bedrooms 1 baths home listed for $15,000 – just under $15.00 per square foot – located in the Valencia Heights subdivision.

For more detailed information of where the homes are located and more, please continue to read by clicking this link

Lakeland Florida Short Sale and Foreclosure Market Report – January 2010

The foreclosure and short sale market has affected all of us here in Lakeland, Florida with the ever decreasing home values in most neighborhoods if not all neighborhoods in our city.  High unemployment rates, influx in foreclosed properties for the foreseeable future and shadow inventory that has yet to hit the real estate market, highlighting the Lakeland distressed housing market for sellers, home buyers and investors is very important in determining their options whether buying or selling.

Starting with this month Lakeland Florida Short Sale and Foreclosure market report, the distressed market report will have its own report. 

For the month of January, Lakeland’s real estate market of short sales and bank-owned (REO) properties had a market share of 60%. There were a total of 88 properties sold in January compared to 60 distressed Lakeland homes sold the year prior, according to Mid-Florida Regional MLS.

Currently there are a total of 1,910 Lakeland homes for sale and 498 Lakeland homes under contract (02/18/2010). By calculating total inventory, homes that are under contract because these properties have not closed is included in my inventory share.

• Bank owned properties – Inventory share is 12.17%
• Short sale properties – Inventory share is 25.42%

The Graph below compares sold homes in all categories – Traditional Sales (None Distressed), Bank Owned Properties (REO) and Lakeland Short Sales

• Average days on market (DOM) for bank-owned properties are 45 days
• Average days to contract for other distressed properties are 136 days.

25 Distressed Homes Sold - average sold price $146,724 – median sold price $139,900

63 Bank-owned (REO) sold – average sold price $88,319 – median sold price $81,000

Distressed sales are scattered in all parts of Lakeland Florida as you can see from this graph below.

If you are interested in a specific area or neighborhood, feel free to contact me at petra@petranorris.com or click the search button below.

Our voices of the Real Estate industries has to be heard.  It is sad when deals are being made to the expenses of taxpayers and homeowners who face short sales, foreclosures and are in the midst of getting the impossible - loan modification.

Overall Lakeland Florida Real Estate Housing for January 2010

Last year’s overall Lakeland Florida Real Estate market was somewhat of a roller coaster ride with home prices up and down throughout the year.  Will the roller coaster ride continue in 2010? From the graph below you can see that Lakeland home prices have increased since October 2009 by almost 9%.

Lakeland Homes sold in January: 145 - previous month:  194 – previous year January 09: 115 sold

January - average sales price $126,320

Previous month: $123,866 (+ 2%) – previous year January 09: $130,334 (-3.08%)

January - median sales price $112,900

Previous month: $113,950 (-0.92%) – previous year January 09: $96,000 (17.60%)

The graph below represents average and median prices in Lakeland for various categories.  When our media provides us with a real estate market reports, generally these reports outline only Single Family Homes and Condominiums. Lakeland Florida has a variety of homes, such as manufactured homes, townhomes, villas and duplex units. 

What are the various average prices in each Lakeland zip code?

Take a look at my spreadsheet below. I’ve separated the report by zip code instead of school zones; it gives you a more accurate report in my opinion. The data and graphs for this report were obtained from the Mid-Florida Regional MLS, it is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. This report does not include “For Sale By Owner”. The numbers highlighted in pink represents the zip codes where average sold prices have exceeded. 

Distressed properties in Lakeland, Florida

For the month of January, Lakeland’s real estate market of distressed homes and bank-owned (REO) properties had a market share of 60%. There were a total of 88 properties sold in January compared to 60 distressed Lakeland homes sold the year prior, according to Mid-Florida Regional MLS.   After further evaluation of my Lakeland Real Estate Market and to my readers who follow the distressed market report closely deserve clarity.  Starting out with January’s Real Estate Report, the distressed market report will have its own report.  Please check back soon for your detailed Lakeland Florida Real Estate report that highlights bank-owned properties (REOs) and Lakeland Short Sales.

If you are interested in a specific area or neighborhood, feel free to contact me at petra@petranorris.com or click the search button below.