First Coast condo sellers finding it hard to move on

Jacksonville-area condominiums, already battered by values that have fallen to rock bottom, are being clobbered by loan restrictions that effectively freeze sales in many complexes that have been hardest hit by the economic downturn.

Credit-worthy and otherwise qualified would-be buyers often can’t get financing to buy many condos. And sellers are often trapped in their condominiums, in part because their units don’t qualify for mortgages, even if they find a willing buyer.

The problem is that condominiums must meet stipulations not applied to other real estate in order to qualify for Fannie Mae government mortgage assumption or Federal Housing Administration guarantees. Generally, financial institutions also mirror the requirements on condominium loans, including three that are the most difficult to maintain in the current economic climate:

via First Coast condo sellers finding it hard to move on

Sun Belt cities get fresh start

Beyond the gates of Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, the fairy tale stops abruptly — with no happily-ever-after ending.

Foreclosure signs dotting once-booming suburban developments that supported decades of growth here and across the rest of the Sun Belt are grim memorials to the recession and housing bust.

One touch of magic remains: 70-degree days in January.

via Sun Belt cities get fresh start.

Answers to tax questions about homebuying

Late last year you caught a break. Congress reached a deal that extended the Bush-era tax cuts for two years and renewed perks like the sales tax deduction and the tuition write-off for non-itemizers.

Through 2012, the top marginal income tax rate will continue to be 35%, and you’ll keep paying just 15% on long-term capital gains and qualified dividends. Plus, in 2011 your paycheck will be a little plumper, thanks to a cut in the payroll tax.

While no one knows what 2012 will bring, this year-end resolution makes planning easier than when rates were in flux. No need to scramble to lock in gains or postpone deductions. But even if Congress eliminated short-term uncertainty, it did nothing to wipe out long-standing confusion about the tax code.

via Answers to tax questions about homebuying.

Family Value: Giving Away a Home

Depressed real-estate values and changes in tax rules make this a good time for older homeowners to transfer property to their children using a specialized trust designed to save on gift and estate taxes.

Known as “qualified personal residence trusts,” or QPRTs, these vehicles allow a homeowner to continue to live in a house for years before transferring ownership to heirs at a discount to the current market value.

Wealth advisers say QPRTs are getting more popular as clients seek to take advantage of beaten-down property values and a temporary increase in the gift-tax exemption to $5 million from $1 million for individuals and to $10 million from $2 million for couples.

via Family Value: Giving Away a Home – WSJ.com.

Heafey picks up Claridge-built Florida condos

Ottawa-based Claridge Homes built the oceanfront Sonata Beach Club, a 64-unit luxury condominium building. Its suites, which are named after composers like Bach and Mozart, range from 2,763 square feet to 3,090 square feet.

According to a media report, Claridge only sold 34 of those units and, in 2009, was the subject of a foreclosure lawsuit concerning its $26.7-million mortgage. Bank of America and PNC Bank, which are listeded as the co-lenders, were the ones who filed the lawsuit, according to a story in the <i>South Florida Business Journal</i>.

Claridge reportedly sold seven units to Raku Investments and Echo Investments Group for a total of $2.5 million. On Feb. 11, Gatineau’s Pierre Heafey picked up the loan and then bought the balance of the units for $9.7 million through a Miami-based corporation, Sonata Beach LLC, according to the story.

via Heafey picks up Claridge-built Florida condos – Residential – Real Estate – Ottawa Business Journal.

Credit woes will put borrowers on hold

How long must you wait to buy a new home if you have a foreclosure or short sale in your credit history?

New rules from Fannie Mae spell it out, and the news is not good for short sellers.

“Time periods for securing a new home loan after a short sale can be as long as those established for foreclosures,” says Sharon Thompson of IberiaBank Mortgage in Sarasota.

via Credit woes will put borrowers on hold.