Gulf Coast Associates' Blog: Around Florida

With Hurricane Dean heading into the southern Gulf of Mexico, we thought it might be a good time to remind Florida residents of the state sponsored My Safe Florida Homes free wind inspection program.

Floridians can learn how safe their homes are now, what they can do to strengthen their homes, and find out if they are eligible for savings on their hurricane insurance premiums. In addition, homeowners who receive an inspection through the program may be eligible for matching grants up to $5,000 to help harden their homes against hurricanes.

The program applies only to homesteaded Floridians who own a single-family detached, site-built homes with an insured value less than $300,000. Properties not eligible for free wind inspections include mobile homes and…

The following are tidbits of information we've come across that may be of interest for buyers or sellers of Southwest Florida real estate.

• A year after the Cape Coral utility expansion project came under fire and the federal government launched an investigation, the costs for water, sewer and irrigation lines have dropped from about $22,000 to $13,690.
• A weakened dollar combined with the slow real estate market continues to attract foreign buyers to Florida. The state ranked #1 in a recent survey as the most popular place for foreigners to buy property.
• U.S. House Bill HR 920 - The Multiple Peril Insurance Act of 2007 – moved out of the Financial Services Committee and has the potential to dramatically change the Florida property…

Well, it's been six months since Gov. Crist signed legislation intended to help Florida homeowners burned by skyrocketing home insurance bills. A review of the situation shows it did not quite turn out like the politicians in Tallahassee thought it would.

State officials promised Florida residents that rates would begin dropping by 25% on the average since the new law permits insurance companies to purchase cheaper state-backed reinsurance and then pass those savings on to their policyholders. In fact, it appears that all the state managed to accomplish with this reform was to take on the extra risk to provide the reinsurance ($12 Billion), and then put Florida taxpayers on the hook for that money too.

A review of the proposed new rates submitted by…

Now that a little time went by since the Florida Legislature passed its real estate tax reform bill (June 2007), and proposed their idea for the constitutional amendment for residents, the battle lines are being drawn for getting the amendment approved in January, 2008. A recent press release shows the Florida Association of Realtors pledged $1M in advocating for the constitutional amendment and that sent a ripple effect between the Realtor® community and the general public - who is as confused as ever. You might expect that ANY tax reform causes everyone to immediately jump on the bandwagon.  However, upon further reflection, opinions are rapidly changing. Depending on who's side you're on with this issue, there is limited time to effect an impact with…

According to a recent study by bizjournals.com, Florida is a great place for small business. The report listed the top ten markets and Florida held four of those top five spots.

Top Florida metropolitan areas for small business growth:

• Orlando
• Sarasota-Bradenton
• Miami-Fort Lauderdale
• Jacksonville

The study used a 12-part formula for looking at 75 of the nation's largest metropolitan areas. The four Florida markets all shared similar qualities; rapid growth in population, employment and the number of small businesses. The lone exception to Florida's dominance was in Las Vegas, which came in ranked at number four.

While the report noted that new construction has been scaled back throughout the state, other new business…

A Florida study conducted by the National and Florida Associations of Realtors showed that home sales to international buyers dropped by 65% from 2005 to 2006. The report indicates there were four major reasons for the decline:

• The excessive increase in property insurance.
• The equally substantial rise in real estate taxes.
• More stringent border security laws that make it tougher for anyone who wishes to spend an entire season in Florida very difficult.
• The increase in mortgage interest rates during the height of the winter season.

In 2006, nealy two thirds of Florida's 12,900 active Realtors® conducted no real estate transactions involving a foreign buyer. Of those who did have a transaction with a foreign buyer, 34% were from…

Well, the Florida Legislature passed a very contentious property tax cutting amendment yesterday (6/14) - with many tax payers up in arms over its effect. The second portion of the bill - which does not require voter approval - is to require local governments to reduce and cap taxes with allowances for new construction and growth in personal income. In order for a local government to override the caps it would take a super majority council vote or a local citizen referendum.

Essentially, all local governments will need to trim their budgets from 3% to 9%. Many local officials feel they would have no choice but to cut local services to their population including fire and rescue personnel. And, perhaps more importantly, the proposed tax law changes could…

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist signed a bill today giving more relief to Florida homeowner's burdened by high home insurance costs. The new law extends the freeze on rates for the state-created Citizens Property Insurance Corporation through the end of 2008 and prohibits national property insurance companies from setting up any new Florida-only subsidiaries.

While the new law is welcome relief for some, it still doesn't address the issue of the national insurers who set up Florida-only subsidiaries previously and who continue to seek higher rates by claiming they are losing money in Florida while making huge profits throughout the rest of the country. Until the legislators in Tallahassee reverse this mistake, many Florida homeowners will continue to suffer…