News about properties and real estate
Dolphin Tower’s troubles stack up [South Florida] Amid the discovery of still more concrete problems at Dolphin Tower, it appears that more money and more time will be needed to repair the damaged 15-story condo building. Just as vexing to displaced residents, though, are signals that Great American Insurance Co., of Ohio, intends to deny …
Continue reading “Dolphin Tower’s troubles stack up [South Florida]”
Commercial Real Estate Borrowers Joint the Ranks of Strategic Defaulters I can understand why the REITs like this–free cash flow! But I can’t understand how it’s a good strategy for the borrowers. Commercial mortgages are a highly leveraged business, and if one of these guys came to me asking for more loans, after he stuck …
Continue reading “Commercial Real Estate Borrowers Joint the Ranks of Strategic Defaulters”
Bulk buyer’s condo coup busts small-time investors In early 2008, with the real estate market well into meltdown, a deal to sell more than 100 condominium units in Royal Palm Beach was struck. Considered one of South Florida’s first bulk condo buys, it was called “savvy” by market analysts and heralded as a sweetheart deal …
Continue reading “Bulk buyer’s condo coup busts small-time investors”
Unit owners’ deaths raise many questions Q:A senior-citizen couple purchased a unit in our 24-unit condominium in 2004 using a $213,000 mortgage and a very small down payment. In 2005, the husband died. In the period 2006 to 2008, the widow secured a total of $50,000 in home-equity loans (mortgages) on the unit. She died …
After the craze: Condo conversions leave fractured communities Michael Jacob was living at the Monterra apartments in Bonita Springs in 2006 when the wave of condo conversions came through. Jacob, and everyone else in the 244-unit complex, was told by management to leave if they didn’t want to pay the sky-high price to buy – …
Continue reading “After the craze: Condo conversions leave fractured communities”
New state law might help reclaim fees [South Florida] Many community associations throughout Broward have been struggling during the recession after foreclosed homes were left vacant and some financially strapped property owners quit paying their maintenance fees. Now the state has stepped in to try to help; a new law allows both homeowner’s and condominium …
Continue reading “New state law might help reclaim fees [South Florida]”