Homeowners destroying homes in foreclosure

I tell potential buyers of foreclosure homes about homes that I have seen like this in our area. This video shows the destruction some homeowners are doing to homes:

Wesley Chapel HOA rents home it doesn't own?

Full article from The Tampa Tribune

Wellness center in Wesley Chapel breaks ground

Groundbreaking was held Wednesday in Wesley Chapel on a 100,000-square-foot three-story wellness center building next to Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel, an 80 bed hospital under construction on Bruce B. Downs.  Half of the wellness center will house swimming pools and fitness equipment and the other half will house medical offices.

The center plans to open next year and will have a warm water therapy pool, a lap pool, locker rooms, an indoor walk/jog track, massage services, group exercise studios, conference rooms, cardio and weights equipment, disease management and wellness education programs, and a cafe.

Pasco commits $14 million for The Fields at Wiregrass in Wesley Chapel

Yesterday Pasco County commissioners unanimously committed $14 million for the proposed 200 acre, multi-field sports complex on Wiregrass Ranch property in Wesley Chapel.  $11.5 million will come from tourist development funds (hotel taxes) which have been accumulating for almost two decades and the remaining $2.5 from funds for park construction.

Touted as a "tourist destination", the youth sports complex according to the Tampa Bay Times could generate as many as many as 100,000 hotel nights per year with 2,000 teams a year.  The fields would be available to public youth sports leagues 25% of the time and the other amenities in the park would be open to the public all the time.

Eight baseball/softball fields, 12 soccer/lacrosse fields, parking lots, concession stands, restrooms, playgrounds, and a welcome center are included in the project which is located adjacent to The Shops at Wiregrass and the $121 million Wesley Chapel hospital under construction--Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel.  Additionally, one ball field and one multi-use field will have stadium seating and be equipped for television production and an adjacent lake currently under construction would be dedicated to the county.

Commissioner Pat Mulieri is quoted in the Tampa Tribune as saying:  "It's the right place at the right time.  Wesley Chapel is an economic engine for Pasco County."

Final details (including the Porter family's wish to speed up construction of Wiregrass Ranch homes) between the county and the Porter family (owner of Wiregrass Ranch) should be finalized within two to three months for a contract signing.

The proposed Fields at Wiregrass is shaded green, Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel, shaded blue, and The Shops at Wiregrass shaded pink.

Ribbon cutting for new fire station in New Tampa today

Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn will be joined by business and community leaders to cut the ribbon on Fire Station #22 in New Tampa. The ribbon cutting and open house will take place today at 2 p.m. The new fire station is located at 10871 Cross Creek Boulevard.

The $1.7 million project was funded by the Assistance to Firefighters Grant for Fire Station Construction, part of the federal stimulus American Reinvestment Recovery Act. Over 5,000 fire departments across the nation applied for the grant. The City of Tampa Fire Rescue Department was one of the 100 selected to receive the funding.

A real estate recovery? It's been a long wait!

Real estate shows signs of recovery: MyFoxTAMPABAY.com

Finally a real estate recovery in sight? Multiple offers on homes for sale? Tampa in top 5 searched cities for homes for sale? Tampa median home prices up. Wow! Also, the National Association of Realtors reported this week that Tampa was in the top 15 markets for major drops in inventory of homes for sale from a year ago with a 37.35% decline!  Link  

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Pasco County gets new website

Pasco County unveiled its new website today featuring flash slides of scenes of Pasco, an easier layout and interactive forms.  Website:  http://www.pascocountyfl.net/index.aspx

Tampa Bay median home prices up in March!

The median price of single family homes rose 7 percent in March for Tampa Bay to $122,900, up from $115,000 in March, 2011.Tampa Bay (Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas, & Hernando counties).

Foreclosure sales dropped from 1,093 in March 2011 to 508 last month. The 54 percent decline pushed overall sales down from 2,756 to 2,616 in the same period, according to My Florida Regional Multiple Listing Service data.

The Tampa Bay Times further reports:  "As foreclosure sales fell, conventional sales rose 23 percent to 1,513 in the same period. Those sales bring higher prices and more stability to the housing market. Experts believe this year's spring cycle — sales from March through June — could be the best since the housing crash. The foreclosure crisis flooded the market with inventory as the recession and tight credit dried up the supply of buyers.

Investors gobbled up the bargain-priced homes. But an improving economy and record low interest rates have sent buyers looking for houses in areas not saturated with distressed sales.

Currently, supply is down, and demand is up for single-family homes. Bidding wars are occurring throughout the region."

73% of Americans believe now is a good time to buy a home

According to Fannie Mae’s March 2012 consumer attitudinal National Housing Survey more Americans now expect both home rental and home purchase prices to increase over the next year. Nearly half of consumers expect higher rental prices, the highest number recorded since monthly tracking began in June 2010. Thirty three percent expect home prices to increase, up 5 percentage points since last month, and the highest percentage recorded in over a year. In addition, confidence in consumers’ views of their own finances is stabilizing—for three straight months—44 percent believe their personal finances will get better over the next year. These trends may be providing Americans with an increased sense of urgency to buy a home as 73 percent of Americans now believe it is a good time to buy a home, up from seventy percent in February.

SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS
Homeownership and Renting

• Thirty-three percent of respondents expect home prices to increase over the next 12 months, a five percentage point increase from last month, the highest level over the past 12 months.
• On average, Americans expect home prices to increase by 0.9 percent over the next 12 months (up slightly since last month).
• Thirty-nine percent of Americans say that mortgage rates will go up in the next 12 months, a five percentage point increase from last month.
• The percentage of respondents who say it is a good time to buy rose by three points to 73 percent, the highest level in over a year, while the percentage of respondents who say it is a good time to sell rose one point to 14 percent this month.
• On average, respondents expect home rental prices to increase by 4.1 percent over the next 12 months, a significant increase since February, and the highest number recorded to date.
• Forty-eight percent of respondents think that home rental prices will go up, a three percentage point increase from last month and the highest number recorded to date.
• Sixty-six percent of respondents say they would buy their next home if they were going to move, up one point since last month, while thirty percent say they would rent, up one point versus last month.

What price homes are selling for in Wesley Chapel in 2012?

70% of the reported single family home sales in Wesley Chapel in the first quarter of 2012 sold for $200,000 or less compared to neighboring New Tampa (in zip code 33647) where 34% of the sales were below $200,000.

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Puppy Easter!

What price are homes selling for in New Tampa in 2012?

Search single family homes for sale in New Tampa

*Information provided by MLS deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

April, 2012 Real Estate Report for Seven Oaks

12 single family homes were reported sold in Seven Oaks by our local MLS in March, 2012.  Reported sold prices ranged from $117,000 for a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, "short sale", tenant occupied home that went under contract in October, 2011 to $540,561 for a 5 bedroom, 4 bathroom custom built pool home.  75% of the homes sold were normal sales and not classified as distressed sales.

Currently 27 single family homes are listed for sale in Seven Oaks in our local MLS.  List prices range from $170,000 to $699,000.

Pasco homeowners pay off mortgage in 2011 and receive foreclosure letters in 2012

Fresh market at Wiregrass this Saturday

Visit the fresh market at The Shops at Wiregrass on Saturday from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM.

April, 2012 Upbeat Tampa Real Estate Report Video

Tampa home prices up year to year and inventory down!

A look at Tampa's housing market: MyFoxTAMPABAY.com

New Tampa Real Estate Report for April, 2012

50 single family homes were reported sold by our local MLS in New Tampa during the month of March.  Reported sold prices ranged from $90,200 for a 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, tenant occupied 1,480 sq. ft. short sale in Heritage Isles to a high of $450,000 for a six bedroom, 5 bathroom Tampa Palms pool home.  Sold prices per square foot (htd. & cooled) ranged from $53.33 to $124.93 with a reported average sales price/sq. ft. of $85.67 for March.  Additionally, the March, 2012 median sales price for single family homes in New Tampa was $221,874 compared to $208,500 in March, 2011.

Currently there are 300 single family homes listed for sale in New Tampa (zip code 33647).  20% of the homes for sale are short sales and 4% are identified as REO/Foreclosures.

Spring fair at The Shops at Wiregrass

Spring Fair 2012 at The Shops at Wiregrass

They are busy setting up the rides for Spring Fair at The Shops at Wiregrass today.  Spring Fair at the mall runs from April 5th through the 14th.

Hours:

3-9 pm (Mondays to Fridays)

12-9 pm (Saturdays)

12-8 pm (Sundays)

Ticket Prices:

1 ticket: $1.25

22 tickets: $25

55 tickets: $60

Also, the Easter Bunny will continue to be available in the Center Court for photos through April 7, 2012.