News About Properties

Elderly couple debates paying off $100,000 mortgage

Should money be used for emergency or low-rate loan?

DEAR BOB: We have learned so much about real estate over many years from your articles. But now we need your advice. I am 72. My wife is 65. We have $160,000 in three-month T-bills. Should we use that money to pay off our approximately $100,000 mortgage at 5.7 percent interest with 28 years remaining at a $560 monthly payment? –Vinh H.

DEAR VINH: You have an excellent fixed mortgage interest rate. The only reason to pay it off early, presuming there is no prepayment penalty, is because you have more than enough cash than you will ever need.

Bids on the block

In a shifting market, property auctions are catching on with owners who want a quick sale and buyers hoping to find a bargain: Shades of EBay.

Fanned by EBay flames, it was bound to happen. As buyers have regained an upper hand and sellers have started to sweat, real estate auctions — live and online — have caught on.

The changing market has nervous owners trying to sell quickly rather than letting their homes languish while their fears of declining values mount. Buyers, sensing the realty winds shifting their way, see bargains, something they’ve only dreamed of in the last few years. And then, of course, there is human nature and the thrill of bidding competition.

Condo market slowing, but buildings still growing [South Florida]

During the go-go summer of 2005, Atlanta investor Martin Kirby was scoring profits as high as $150,000 a unit by selling used condominiums on the beach.

This year, he counts himself lucky to clear $35,000 per deal.

Lakeland’s Garden District is Blooming With Condos [South Florida]

Condominium development will soon be blooming in downtown Lakeland’s Garden District.

Right now, One Garden Place is in a planting stage, with a sign showing conceptual drawings of the complex sitting on an empty lot of uncut grass.

But when it’s complete, the new condo complex will boast 24 two- and three-bedroom units in three buildings, built-in parking, a community pool and garden.

Foreclosures are back

In the first quarter, Florida had more foreclosures than any state except Texas

From the magnetic sign on his car — “We Buy Houses” — to his Web site — “FloridaHomeRescue.com” — Jim Willig is not shy about what he does for a living. He buys homes from owners who have gotten themselves into a box.

And, say Willig and other practitioners in the region, business is picking up.

Radisson to close on Monday [South Florida]

Dozens stood on the balconies of their rooms as hundreds more partied on the beachfront watching the evening’s fireworks show.

The scene will be much different on Monday when the 200-plus suite Radisson, one of only three hotels on Marco Island, shuts its doors to guests and likely remains without a buyer.

An official of the Marriott Vacation Club International of Orlando (MVCI) told the Marco Island Sun Times on Wednesday that the company is trying to get this Friday’s closing extended to a later date.