Buyers Face Gamble With Rising Mortgage Rates

February is when potential home sellers start painting walls beige and cleaning out closets, preparing for the spring homebuying season. But sellers got some unnerving news last week: The interest rate on a 30-year mortgage jumped up to a level not seen since last April.

In November, the average rate slipped to a 40-year low of 4.17 percent. Today, it’s just over 5 percent, and concerns are growing that rates will keep rising — enough to scare away potential buyers. It’s at least enough to make those buyers rethink the advantages of homeownership.

via Buyers Face Gamble With Rising Mortgage Rates

Development returns to beachside

A labor of love, an economic boost and a local link to a world of travelers: the newly opened Royal Floridian South Tower is all of those.

The first new beachside construction project since 2006, the 53-unit structure is the latest addition to Spinnaker Resorts, owned by Ken Thomas. His 10 resort properties include six at Hilton Head, S.C., and two in Branson, Mo., but he chose the Ormond Beach property with an eye on the future.

"When we bought the (Royal Floridian) project 12 years ago, that land (for the South Tower) was part of it, and I always planned to build on it," Thomas said in a telephone interview on his way into town from Hilton Head for a ribbon cutting that was scheduled for Friday at the new tower.

via Development returns to beachside

Delano to expand outside U.S.

Morgans Hotel Group, owner of the famous South Beach boutique lodging pioneer, announced Thursday that it had signed hotel management agreements that will expand the Delano brand to Mexico and Turkey.

The 114-room Delano in Cabo San Lucas, on Mexico’s Baja Peninsula, is under construction and expected to open in early 2013.

In Turkey, the 200-room hotel will be on the Aegean Sea. Also pegged to a 2013 opening, the resort will have several restaurants and bars, a Turkish spa and a focus on water sports.

via Delano to expand outside U.S.

Neighborhood profile: More than 1 in 8 homes in Canyon Isles, west of Boynton Beach, in foreclosure

You don’t have to be a dedicated Real Time reader to know that residential real estate in Palm Beach County has taken a historic tumble in recent years. But while most coverage focuses on a broad view of the market, every neighborhood’s real estate story is unique.

Today we’re starting a series of posts focusing on individual neighborhoods. We’ll look at the sales and price trends through both the boom and bust, review the tax assessment data and give you a current snapshot of the foreclosure situation.

First up is Canyon Isles, a GL Homes-built community of 500 single-family homes west of Boynton Beach in the Ag Reserve. According to data from financial and property information company CoreLogic, 67 of the 500 homes in Canyon Isles are currently in foreclosure. That’s 13.4 percent, or more than one in eight.

via Neighborhood profile: More than 1 in 8 homes in Canyon Isles, west of Boynton Beach, in foreclosure

Using a reverse mortgage to buy a home Realty Q&A

Question: I am not qualified to make the decisions necessary for our situation, but hope that someone with your knowledge may help guide me so my husband and I can make it for our remaining 20 years. The situation is this:

We don’t have any retirement income other than savings. For years, my husband invested in the stock market and lived very simply, except for one extravagance, an in-ground backyard pool which we built about 20 years ago. Over the years, he was able to save/earn close to $1 million in the stock market, then 2008 arrived and he was advised by our “financial manager” to keep all his money in the market, though the market tumbled and tumbled. In the end, we lost $420,000. I gasp when I realize our adviser allowed that to happen at our age; in retrospect, we think she probably should be sued, although that’s not our style or ability to do.

via Using a reverse mortgage to buy a home Realty Q&A

1099 Hassles For Rental Real Estate Owners

In an earlier post, I ranted about the burdensome new Form 1099 reporting requirements for businesses. Those rules are scheduled to kick in next year, but there’s a good chance they will be repealed before then. Fingers crossed!

Meanwhile, yet another set of nasty new 1099 rules are lurking in the background. These rules affect owners of rental real estate. They were buried in last September’s generally pro-taxpayer Small Business Jobs Act of 2010. For reasons that escape me, they have not gotten much attention, and I’ve not yet heard loud demands for repeal. Here’s the story.

via 1099 Hassles For Rental Real Estate Owners.