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Lenders now own 872,000 homes

Tuesday, 24 May 2011 16:28 Written by Shawn Wilson

WASHINGTON - May 24, 2011 - U.S. banks and money lenders now own 872,000 homes, a number that could more than double in the coming years, real estate research firm RealtyTrac said.

The current number of properties owned by banks and lenders is nearly double what they owned in 2007, before the housing market began to collapse, The New York Times reported Monday.

Lenders frequently sell homes at a substantial discount and economists expect it will take three years for lenders to sell the properties they have taken over.

That means for the next three years at least, the sale of so-called distressed homes will continue to slow a recovery in the housing market.

"It remains a heavy weight on the banking system. Housing prices are falling, and they are going to fall some more," said Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody's Analytics.

Moody's has predicted home values could drop an average of 5 percent by the end of 2011 before making a slight comeback in 2012.

A separate real estate research firm, Trepp, said lenders could lose $40 billion by selling homes at discounted prices.

Lenders are also aware that while they sell homes at discount prices, "We are contributing to the downward spiral in market values," said Eric Will, who manages distressed home sales at the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp.

"We want to make sure we are helping stabilize communities," Will said.

Copyright © 2011 United Press International

The Time To Buy in The Keys is Now!!!

Wednesday, 25 May 2011 04:41 Written by Shawn Wilson

328 Caroline Street Key West, Florida 33040
Luxury Key West Home: stunning 6 bedroom, 5 bathroom, 3,950 sf luxury home in Old Town Key West is a beautiful example of old world craftsmanship with detailed workmanship in the rare Dade County Pine floors, refinished walls, original moldings, frames and fine finished detail. This historic home offers amazing 1,500 sf wrap around porches with an independent outdoor staircase. The interior features top of the line Onyx countertops, Bosch & Meile appliances, custom cabinetry, a beautiful fireplace, central air and washer/dryer while the exterior offers a heated pool, outdoor shower, grill area, tropical landscaping plus a 1,000 sf independent Guest House and two off-street parking spaces. Originally built in 1905 as Officer's Quarters for the Marine Corp Commanding Officer, this one of a kind, luxury home is built on a large 7,200 sf lot and has been superbly maintained with detailed remodeling projects as recently as 2007.

Highest Overall Satisfaction For Home Buying/Selling!

Thursday, 12 August 2010 10:47 Written by Jessica Woods Last Updated on Thursday, 09 September 2010 03:36

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information contact:

August 6, 2010 Prudential Keyside Properties

305-451-1500

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Prudential Real Estate Ranked Highest for Seller Satisfaction in J.D. Power and Associates' 2010 Home Buyer/Seller Study

Key Largo, FL - Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services, a Prudential Financial, Inc. [NYSE: PRU] company, and Prudential Keyside Properties announced that Prudential Real Estate ranks "Highest Overall Satisfaction for Home Sellers Among National Full Service Real Estate Firms" in J.D. Power and Associates' 2010 Home Buyer/Seller Study^SM.

The study measures customer satisfaction of home sellers and buyers with major national real estate companies. Overall satisfaction is determined by examining four factors for the home-selling experience: agent (44%); marketing (30%); office (15%); and services (11%).

Among home sellers, Prudential Real Estate scored highest on a 1,000-point scale and received particularly high ratings from customers in the marketing and agent factors. This is the second time in three years the Prudential Real Estate Network ranked highest in seller satisfaction. The Network also ranked highest in 2008.

"This distinction underscores the satisfaction level and consistency of our network through challenging times in our industry," said Jim Mallozzi, chairman and CEO, Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services. "Affiliate to affiliate, our sales professionals are the local-market experts who market and price homes right, while providing attentive service. The more you know us, the more you love us."

Added Earl Lee, president, Prudential Real Estate and Relocation Services: "The Prudential Real Estate Network already enjoys one of the highest average selling prices in the industry. And, this prestigious J.D. Power and Associates designation demonstrates that our sales professionals are representing their customers with distinction."

The team at Prudential Keyside Properties works hard to exceed the expectations of its clients - sellers and buyers alike, explained Shawn Wilson, broker/owner, Prudential Keyside Properties. "In today's market, our clients require all the expertise and service we can offer - and by leveraging Prudential's brand strength, its broad product and service offerings and its effective Internet marketing programs, we provide sellers with the exposure they need for their homes."

The study finds that despite the popularity of home selling and buying resources on the Internet, the real estate sales professional remains key to customer satisfaction with real estate companies. A large proportion of both home sellers and buyers rely on the Internet to facilitate the buying or selling process, with 79 percent of buyers saying that they used Internet tools to help them in the purchase process, and 82 percent of sellers reporting that they used a website listing to market their home. In addition, among home sellers, online methods are the most important aspect of marketing.

However, the sales professional carries the greatest importance among the factors that comprise overall satisfaction among both home sellers and buyers.

According to J.D. Power and Associates, although the Internet provides real estate consumers with the ability to perform some essential tasks - such as listing a home for sale or researching a neighborhood in which to purchase a home - it still does not replace the importance of a good sales professional. The knowledge and expertise provided by experienced sales professionals are important benefits of using a full-service real estate company.

Satisfaction averages 768 among those customers whose homes sold within five months or less, but declines considerably to an average of 702 among customers whose homes took seven months or longer to sell, the study showed.

Nearly one-half of respondents in the study (46%) reported using recommendations from family or friends to find their real estate sales professional. Approximately 32 percent used a sales professional they had used previously, 22 percent used the internet and 12 percent used a listing agent for property.

The study reports that home buyers were shown an average of 17 homes before they made a purchase. Home sellers reported that, on average, their home was shown 12 times, and about two open houses were conducted before a sale occurred.

The 2010 Home Buyer/Seller Study includes 3,096 evaluations from 2,817 respondents who bought or sold a home between March 2009 and April 2010.

Based in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services company operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, training and customer satisfaction. The company's quality

and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. For more information on cell phone ratings, car reviews and ratings, car insurance, health insurance and

more, visit JDPower.com. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill

Companies.

Prudential Real Estate provides franchises with business strategies using Operation Reviews as well as numerous benefits, including access to Prudential Real Estate's Online Seller Advantage^SM program designed to provide real-time information to sellers with the touch of a keystroke. Prudential Real Estate is one of the largest real estate brokerage franchise networks in North America, with 1,700 franchise offices and approximately 60,000 sales professionals in the franchise network as of March 31, 2010.

Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE: PRU), a financial services leader with approximately $693 billion of assets under management as of March 31, 2010, has operations in the United States, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Prudential's diverse and talented employees are committed to helping individual and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth through a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds, investment management, and real estate services. In the U.S., Prudential's iconic Rock symbol has stood for strength, stability, expertise and innovation for more than a century. For more information, please visit www.news.prudential.com.

Warren Buffet Predicts Real Estate Rebound - In 2011

Wednesday, 25 May 2011 05:05 Written by Shawn

by Tom Royce on March 1, 2010

If the Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffet, is correct the residential real estate market will rebound in 2011. Buffet, in his letter to Berkshire Hathaway stockholders, thinks that the demand curve will turn at that state and the residential markets will start to improve.

I am sure this news is not what real estate agents are hoping to hear, I tend to agree. The housing market still has way too much overhang from foreclosures and short sales for buyers to have confidence investing in homes. Add to that a nervous economy, it would be foolish to think that all will be okay this summer.

So real estate agents, tighten that belt and continue to build your systems this year so you are ready for 2011.

"Within a year or so, residential housing problems should largely be behind us," Buffett wrote Saturday in his annual letter to the shareholders of his Berkshire Hathaway. "Prices will remain far below 'bubble' levels, of course, but for every seller or lender hurt by this there will be a buyer who benefits. Indeed, many families that couldn't afford to buy an appropriate home a few years ago now find it well within their means."

Record foreclosures flooded a U.S. real estate market already glutted with unsold property, causing housing starts to fall.

"People thought it was good news a few years back when housing starts - the supply side of the picture - were running about 2 million annually," wrote Buffett, 79, chairman and CEO of Omaha-based Berkshire. "But household formations - the demand side - only amounted to about 1.2 million."

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