http://www.tampa4u.com/blog A real estate blog providing information about the Tampa Bay Florida area and any real estate or mortgage tidbits pertaining to real estate. Our area of focus is on Hillsborough County, Pasco County, Pinellas County, and part of Hernando county. We will also discuss here contemporary real estate issues, what's new and cool with technology, opinions, market updates, national news of interest, advice for buyers and sellers, REALTOR® topics, etc. Just contact us we'll talk about anything if it's not covered here:) Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:52:23 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en An article in the Washington Post does a good job explaining the impact that the Cap And Trade Bill will have on new home construction and the housing market: The bill would give the federal government power over local building codes. It requires that by 2012 codes must require that new buildings be ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/11/20/cap-trade-and-real-estate/ The Greater Tampa Association of Realtors recorded 1,722 sales in October 2009 versus 1,279 a year earlier. The average sales price - Tampa Realtors used average instead of median - dropped 16 percent over those 12 months. A typical home sold for $156,775 last month compared to $186,424 a year ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/11/17/hillsborough-home-sales-up-in-october/ A report issued yesterday by the Pew Center on the States finds Florida to be among the worst states in the nation in terms of its economy.The report, called “Beyond California: States in Fiscal Peril,” notes that what many of us have been recognizing day by day, month by month ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/11/15/pew-report-on-florida/ What do you do if you want to buy a house, but don't have the good credit necessary to obtain a mortgage? Or perhaps you can get a mortgage, but are short for money for a down payment? How do you get your house then? Fortunately, there are ways to ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/11/12/so-whats-the-difference-between-a-lease-purchase-and-a-lease-option/ The Obama administration's mortgage relief program has reached one in five eligible homeowners, a government report says, but most of those borrowers are on temporary trial plans that have yet to be made final.As of the end of October, more than 650,000 borrowers, or 20 percent of those eligible, had ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/11/10/housing-plan-reaches-1-in-5-borrowers/ Congress has extended and expanded the homebuyer tax credit. The modifications will become effective when President Obama signs.  I have received numerous emails and comments from readers who asked for me to report the changes to the First Time Homebuyers Tax Credit when they occurred, and the changes most likely will ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/11/09/homebuyer-tax-credit-extended/ When looking for a mortgage, the buyer is more than scanning through the phone book for the next listed mortgage agent. Instead, they are shopping for the best interest rates and the best deals a lender can offer. The mortgage business is just that, a business. They are out to ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/11/08/3-tips-for-finding-the-best-mortgage/ In the ever popular battle against filling land fills with useless waste, bottled water seems to be losing. Bottled water contributes more than 50 million pieces of garbage per day to land fills, all of which will take no less than 1,000 years to biodegrade. The trouble with bottled water ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/11/04/water-bottled-or-tap-2/ Everyone believes their home will be just as beautiful to the people walking through for a sale as it is to them. This is never the case. A homeowner tailors their personal space to their likes and not to the feelings of the masses. When trying to sell your home, ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/11/03/using-a-focus-group-to-earn-a-quick-sale/ When the bottom fell out of the mortgage market, potential home buyers looked at the ARM loan as being the worst loan to choose. The ARM has its place in the mortgage and refinance world, but that does not mean it should be used by people who can only afford ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/11/02/fixed-and-arm-refinance-loans-are-arms-still-an-option/ Hillsborough County sales rose 20 percent in September from a year earlier. The Greater Tampa Association of Realtors counted 1,709 sales last month. That's 20 percent higher than the 1,429 sales reported in September 2008. September sales were up 2 percent over August's tally of 1,672. As always, here's the chart: Download Gtar909 http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/10/30/hillsborough-county-home-sales-higher-in-september/ A must-read from the Washington Times: On and on go the professional alarmists - America's housing sector is down and will stay down for a long time to come. Fact: The bursting of a severe housing bubble nearly pushed the American economy over the edge last year. But does that alone ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/10/27/beware-of-americas-housing-crisis-huh/ Pinellas County home sales rose 35 percent from September 2008 to September 2009. Prices declined 16 percent year over year from $160,000 to $134,160.The statistics come from the Pinellas Realtor Organization. There's a brief analysis from James Thorner after the jump: http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/10/25/pinellas-county-home-sales-up-35-percent/ People are looking for the next great deal and when that buyer is talking about spending millions instead of thousands, the stakes and the rules change dramatically. Despite the fact that much of the real estate market has faltered over the last few years, there are home buyers out there ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/10/24/luxury-homes-can-sell-but-you-need-a-great-real-estate-agent/ There is money to be saved in the real estate market and it has nothing to do with home foreclosures. Not every home on the market was finished before the bottom fell out of the new home sales. Many builders were unable to finish their current projects before the market ... http://www.tampa4u.com/blog/2009/10/21/save-money-with-an-unfinished-home/