Archive for January, 2008

Amendment 1 (One) Passes-Calculating Your Taxes If You Move

January 31st, 2008 categories: Tampa Real Estate, Tips for Sellers, Hillsborough Property Tax

Many homeowners are now wondering what the passing of Amendment 1 means to them, especially if they want to move. Previously, if you moved, you started paying property taxes based on the new market value of the new home. Any benefits you gained by staying put in your previous homestead were wiped out. This meant much higher taxes for those who had been in one home for a long time. The longer they owned the home, the greater the benefits that were sacrificed.

Older couples scaling down were faced with higher taxes, which didn’t seem right and kept many from making the move. A key component of Amendment One is the portability factor. Homeowners can now transfer the accumulated benefits of the 3% tax cap of Save Our Homes.

The e-mails are already beginning to roll in. From a client:

“Hi, Lenny! How have you been? Do you know any of the details about the new property tax law? My best friend is here from Scotland this week and is trying to help her parents decide whether or not to sell their Parkland Estates home that they’ve lived in for about 45 years. Their taxes are not very high, but if they downsize into a small condo, the taxes might be even lower. Are they now forced to keep their current taxes or can they take what might be the lower taxes on a condo?”

These are the folks who will certainly be released from the golden handcuffs and will now most likely consider that move into a smaller, lower maintenance place.

So here’s the best way to see how Amendment One will affect you:

Step 1: Visit the appraiser’s website, look up your property and note two figures, the “Just Market Value” and the “Assessed Value”. (Do it here)

Step 2: Go to the Tampa Tribune’s Tax calculator, and plug in the numbers where noted. There’s a calculator for how things will change with your current property and a calculator for the taxes on the new place if you move. (Do it here).

But take note. Many legal experts believe that the portability of the benefits puts new Florida home buyers at a disadvantage, a point that may be unconstitutional as it relates to interstate commerce. A legal challenge may be forthcoming.

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Posted by Lenny Gurvich | 3 Comments »

Lower Taxes It Is, But Are We Better Off?

January 30th, 2008 categories: Tampa Real Estate, Tips for Sellers, Hillsborough Property Tax

It was hard to figure that a tax cut would get voted down, and it certainly did not. Let’s face it, on a personal level, every Floridian is better off with the cut. But is the state as a whole any better off?Here’s what we get:

• An additional $25,000 exempted from the assessed value, excluding the portion that goes to schools.
• The ability to take the accumulated benefits of the 3% cap on tax increases with us when we move to a new home.

So those living in Florida the longest, in the same home, will benefit the most. The handcuffs are off, or loosened at least. Feel free to move, the screws will no longer be put to you for moving up (or down).

But can you find a buyer? Maybe you can find someone else looking to move up and drag their benefits with them. But the first time buyer in Florida, whether a newly married couple, or someone moving in from out of state, will have no such benefits to bring along. They will pay a substantially higher amount of taxes. Sure, they’ll get the $50k exemption, which will lower their taxes by about $300 more than they would have paid had VOTE NO won.

So if you’ve lived in the same home in Florida for many years, and are considering a move, congrats, you’re better off. Many in my business say this is just what we need to kick-start the market and get more people selling and buying. We’ll see.

Interested in how this affects you as a seller or buyer? Contact us.

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Posted by Lenny Gurvich | No Comments »

Tampa Title Companies-Who Choice Is It?

January 29th, 2008 categories: Tampa Real Estate, Tips for Sellers

It seems a certain Title company in Tampa recently ran an ad that asked home buyers and home sellers to “ask your loan officer or real estate agent if they will object if you choose your own title company”, and “depending on their response– and also their body language– you may wonder if they are financially rewarded for directing clients to a title company they are affiliated with”. The ad then went on to say that you’ll pay hundreds of dollars more for a closing with an “affiliated” or “in-house” title company.

If you’re buying or selling a home here’s what you need to know:

• The Florida Association of Realtors Residential Sale and Purchase Contract stipulates whether the buyer or the seller will choose the title company and stipulates who will pay for the owner’s title policy.
• The seller normally selects the title company, since the seller most often pays for the buyer’s (owner’s) title policy, but this is always negotiable.
• The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, or RESPA, prohibits the payment of a referral fee from a company that provides settlement services, such as a title company (read it).
• If a real estate brokerage has any relationship with a title company (“affiliated” or “in-house”), that relationship must be disclosed in writing to the party referred (read it).

So as a home seller in Florida, you’ll most likely be purchasing your buyers’ title policy, and you’ll have to choose a title company to provide that insurance and handle the closing of the transaction. Do your homework before listing your home for sale. Call some title companies and inquire about their fees and their services. Ask your neighbors for referrals. If you ask us for referrals we’ll give you a list of companies that have assisted our clients in the past. Companies that provide a level of service that has been satisfactory to our clients. The choice is yours.

Posted by Lenny Gurvich | No Comments »

Tale of Two Sales in Seminole Heights

January 28th, 2008 categories: Tampa Real Estate, Seminole Heights Homes, Short Sale Information

Pay attention to the sold dates in chart above. These sales, just 20 months apart, are for the same home in Seminole Heights, a beautiful Spanish style 2/1, on one of the nicer streets in Seminole Heights. This is a fine example of what happens when the bank takes ownership.

Purchased at the peak of the market in early 2006, the buyers paid more than asking price and then lost it in late 2007. The bank quickly let it go for $185k, the same price it had sold for in August of 2004. A price correction of about 33%.

Posted by Lenny Gurvich | 2 Comments »

It’s All About The Grid-Tampa Luxury Home Sales

January 25th, 2008 categories: Tampa Real Estate, South Tampa, Tampa Waterfront Homes, Tampa Luxury Homes, Tampa Neighborhoods, South Tampa Neighborhoods

Doing some research this afternoon, and in looking at sales (single family homes) over and above $2.2 million dollars in Hillsborough County since 2003 we find:

There have been 83 of them.
Median size is 6114 sqft.
Biggest concentrations? Grid WL18 (South 1/2 of Davis Islands) leads the way with 15. Next up is WH17 (Culbreath Isles) with 12. WL17 (North 1/2 of Davis Islands) and WJ17 (Golfview area) each have 7 apiece. The other 42 are fairly scattered.
Average days to sell = 191.
Average Sold price per sqft: about $497

Data used is from Mid-Florida Regional MLS, all brokers/agents included. Does not include any private, non-brokered sales.

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