October 6, 2007
Winter break in the Florida sunshine
Many Brits who have tired of the cold British weather are following the lead of snowbirds to spend their winters at sunny Florida. The Sunshine State is continuously drawing tourists every year. An estimated 60 million vacationers each year enjoy Florida’s largest theme park and resort complex, 1,000 golf courses, and the hundreds of fabulous beaches. This phenomenon is being exploited by many property investors keen to let their homes out to accommodation-needy holidaymakers.
Real estate investors making rental yields are not the only ones profiting from their Floridian home. It has been reported that between the years 2000 and 2005, real estate prices in Florida increased by 108 per cent. This means that those who purchased a property over five years ago can expect great gains should they decide to sell their property. Even now, prices are still increasing.
Posted on: Florida
October 4, 2007
Exploring Central Florida: Resorts
Orlando is the social and economic capital of Florida’s central region and the most popular with British property buyers. It is the excellent destination for investment buyers not only for its different themeparks and other attractions but also the rental potential in the area is really good. As expected, there are always new developments under way in and around the Orlando metropolitan area. Bridgeford Crossing, for instance, is a new resort presently being developed only minutes from Disney and near to numerous other major attractions of the state. Villas of various sizes between three and six bedrooms will be offered by the resort with prices starting from $354,900.
Posted on: Florida
US MARKET SLIPS ONCE AGAIN
There was more bad news for the US market: national property prices recorded a second-quarter gain of just 3.7 per cent year-on-year.
Prices in the Northeast climbed by 6.3 per cent to $299,200 (£156,800), making it the only region to turn in a comparatively good performance. Midwestern prices fell by two per cent, whilst both the south and the west made small gains of 4.1 and 3.6 per cent respectively.
Posted on: Florida
October 3, 2007
The regions and areas of Florida uncovered
With year-round sun, relaxing beaches and mass tourism in equal measures, Florida is an ideal home-buying destination for a holiday home, permanent residence or investment property.
Property prices in Florida have risen significantly in the last few years. According to the Florida Association of Realtors, between July 2004 and July 2005 Florida’s property prices increased by 33 per cent. Many US real estate experts estimate that property prices in Florida will continue to rise at a steady pace for the foreseeable future, so it makes sense to buy property as quickly as possible. Property prices vary dramatically throughout Florida. Those with unlimited financial resources can purchase luxury property for millions of dollars in the state – especially around Miami and in the Florida Keys.
North West Florida
General: Some of America’s finest beaches are found along the region’s coastline, but some have been spoilt by excessive commercialisation. Access: Tallahassee regional airport can be accessed from any of Florida’s airports served by the UK. Resorts: The main towns are Pensacola and Tallahassee – Florida’s state capital. With a population of 150,000, Tallahassee is the north-west’s largest habitable city.
North East Florida
General: The north-east coastline borders the Atlantic. It is noted for its golden beaches and miles of peninsulas flanked by barrier islands. Access: Jacksonville airport is not very well served by flights from UK, but can be reached by air from inside Florida. Resorts: The region is dominated by Jacksonville – Florida’s largest city. There are a number of exclusive communities in the area including Ponte Vedra.
Posted on: Florida
October 2, 2007
Buyers Market in Orlando Florida
The property market in Central Florida has shifted in the past year from a seller’s market to a buyer’s market. While there are still some areas that have reported gains in prices and value, the overall property market has definitely changed. This means that it is the best time to buy and invest on real estate in the Sunshine State. It is an even better time for international property investors with the dollar being so low against foreign currencies.
According to Jeanette Cox of Watson Realty Florida, Osceola County, located southeast of Orlando and including Kissimmee, have seen a remarkable growth in inventories and days on the market. The sales figures for the month of March 2007 show that 259 homes were sold. These properties were on the market for an average of 99 days. Presently, there are a staggering 5,762 homes on the market. These numbers are a far cry from the figures of March 2004 at the height of the housing boom. There were 469 sales that month, and the homes were on the market for 67 days. Existing inventory was only 871 homes in the whole county.
Posted on: Florida
Buying property in Florida continues to thrill
If someone told you that you could purchase a three-bedroom property with a pool close to one of the world’s most popular tourist attractions for as little as £200,000, you’d assume they were winding you up.
It is surprising how much affect a single development can have on an area – how a city, state, region or even country can be completely rejuvenated by the addition of one new attraction. For example, who could have known that a steel tower erected in the heart of the French capital amidst fierce protests from locals who considered it an eyesore, would go on to attract almost six million visitors a year? Who could have predicted that a badly constructed cathedral in Pisa, Italy, would prove to be such a hit with tourists? In Florida’s case, given the development in question increased tourism was not so much a surprise as an inevitable consequence, the role this development has had in transforming the state from a southern US backwater into a property buyer’s dream was perhaps not so expected. The development referred to is, of course, Disney World.
Posted on: Florida
September 27, 2007
Exploring Central Florida
Florida would likely have been a very different place today had it not been for the decision of Walt and Roy Disney to purchase a land at southwest Orlando for their new themepark – Disney World. Florida, particularly the central region of the state, was brought to life because of Disney World. This gave way to the development of many similar attractions around the central region of the state. Florida’s centre actually has the most number of amusement parks anywhere in the world, including eleven major theme parks such as Sea World, Universal Studios and, of course, Disney World. But central Florida is not only known for theme parks. The region has over 100 natural lakes. There are more than twenty golf courses in the city alone, and many others in the nearby metropolitan area. Thus, visitors as well as residents can take some much needed peaceful time away from the hustle and bustle of Disney World et al. It is not surprising then that Florida’s central region has become such a hit to overseas buyers especially the Brits who prefer it than other areas of Florida.
Posted on: Florida
September 25, 2007
Property in Florida looking to a bright future?
Tourism is still the number one industry in the Sunshine State in spite of the fact that the past year has seen the market for Florida property take a bit of a sluggish turn. Visitors are still flooding in to Florida; therefore buying property can still be considered a sensible investment, although not necessarily in the short-term.
“There is currently a lot of speculation about the longevity of the housing market as a good investment,” shares Kim Williams from Florida Special Dreams property management. “There are so many homes being built here but I think there is still a good opportunity for investment if you are in it for the long haul.”
Posted on: Florida
September 22, 2007
International real estate investors Florida is ripe
For awhile, real estate boomed all over America until 2006. The year saw the market slowing down. The slump can be attributed to the oversupply of new and resale properties. This was most evident in South Florida, one of the hottest markets in previous years. Although there are some isolated areas that are still seller’s markets, most of the area is now a buyer’s market. This is good news for property investors and buyers because this is the right time to get in.
According to an annual state of the market report for Southwest Florida, realtors from the Re/Max-Ellis Team in Ft. Myers, oversupply caused prices to go down significantly.
read more
Posted on: Florida
September 21, 2007
Introducing property in Florida
Overseas property buyers see the USA more as a place to emigrate rather than as a potential to invest property abroad. The exception rule is the sunshine state of Florida, which offers sound investment potential and desirable holiday homes.
Forty million people each year visit Florida to see the beaches and the theme parks. The market has changed from being one that can guarantee short term gains to one where capital gains can be achieved over a longer period of time. Florida has huge amounts of land. Property developers build with overseas property buyers in mind. Favourable exchange rates can mean huge savings when buying property in Florida. The state, like the US as a whole, benefits from highly regulated real estate industry which means that buying property in Florida has in-built safe guards.
Posted on: Florida
Recent Posts
- Living and Working in Florida
- Living and Working in Florida: The Floridian Lifestyle
- Golf Property on Course for World Domination
- Exploring Provence and the French Riviera
- Do French regions matter? Climate Change
News archive
- November 2007 (25)
- October 2007 (64)
- September 2007 (38)
- August 2007 (46)
- July 2007 (4)
- June 2007 (3)
- May 2007 (3)
- April 2007 (1)
- March 2007 (16)
- February 2007 (12)
- January 2007 (2)
- December 2006 (4)
- November 2006 (9)
- October 2006 (7)
- September 2006 (18)
- August 2006 (5)
- July 2006 (4)
- May 2006 (2)
- March 2006 (2)
- February 2006 (2)
- November 2005 (1)
- October 2005 (7)
- September 2005 (7)
- August 2005 (2)
- July 2005 (4)
- June 2005 (2)
- May 2005 (2)
- April 2005 (1)
- March 2005 (1)
- February 2005 (3)
- January 2005 (4)