Relocating to New Tampa

Relocation can be stressful, but it can also be an adventure. Buying a house in a city you’re not familiar with yet is a huge decision and working with a Realtor who is knowledgeable is really important. Much of your research can be done online, but there are some things that just can’t be conveyed without a human perspective from someone who has an understanding of the area. If you only have a few weeks to find a home, you can’t afford to waste time looking at homes that won’t work for you. For example, many homes look fantastic in pictures, but it’s imperitive to know if there are lawsuits pending or problems with the HOA. Cory Lake Isles is a perfect example of this. The community is beautiful, but there are some problems with the developer not paying off the CDD bonds on some of the homes in there. A good realtor will also know what amenities are offered in different communities and which developments have higher than normal fees. Some communities have a high HOA fee, others have a CDD (community development district) fee added in to the taxes. Some communities (like Hunter’s Green) appear to have fabulous amenities, but only members of the country club can use most of them and with that comes a pretty hefty fee.

If you’re looking to relocate or if you have any questions about communities or homes in the New Tampa area I would love to hear from you!

Hunter’s Green Short Sales – Info for Buyers

Purchasing a short sale doesn’t have to be a crazy experiece as long as you have realistic expectations.  Everyone has already heard about the long wait and most people are at least somewhat preparerd for that.  Short sales are almost always sold “as-is” and aren’t usually in perfect condition, but that is expected.  What some people don’t realize though, is that in deed restriced communities such as Hunter’s Green, Cory Lake Isles, Grand Hampton, Heritage Isles, Tampa Palms, or Live Oak Preserve, the HOA can (and will) require that the home be brought up to their standards and they can set very strict time limits for doing this. 

One of the short sales I completed in Hunter’s Green (representing the Seller) was a very nice custom home in one of the gated villages.  It was in ok condition overall, but it did need some maintenance, especially to the exterior.  The caged pool had some tears in the screened enclosure, the lawn had several dead patches, and the roof had a tile that had slipped out of place.  The Buyer was prepared to fix these odds and ends and they did have an inspection done so they knew what the problems were with the home were.  The day of closing, the Buyer received a list from the Hunter’s Green HOA showing everything that was required and the new owners were given 10 days to do it.  The list included pressure washing the roof and replacing the screen on the pool enclosure, painting of the entire exterior and trim of the home, pressure washing the driveway, trimming all landscape and trees, replacing the sod (not plugging, actual replacement), painting the mailbox, and putting new mulch in the plant beds around the entire perimeter of the home.  While these were probably all things the new homeowner was planning on doing eventually anyway, having only 10 days to complete everything came as a bit of a shock to them! 

Many times Buyers think they will be able to gradually fix a home after they purchase it, but if there’s a strict HOA be prepared (both financially and time-wise) to bring the home up to speed QUICK!!  Most people don’t have a lot of money left right after closing on a home after paying the down payment, escrow reserves, and moving expenses, but if you’re purchasing a home in a deed restriced community such as Hunter’s Green – be prepared.  The Hunter’s Green HOA is very strict and can be irritating at times, but these strict standards are also what ensures the beauty and value of the community.

To avoid having any unpleasant surprises at or just after closing, I recommend contacting the HOA and asking for a list of any code citations on the home you are purchasing.  Adhering to their rules and timelines is much easier if you’re prepared for it ahead of time!

For homes currently listed in Hunter’s Green see the interactive map below and please let me know if you have any questions!  Loree Nichols 813.454.7532 or Loree@welovetampa.com

Hunter’s Green Short Sales in New Tampa – For Sellers

Hunter’s Green is experiencing fewer short sales that other New Tampa Communities such as Cory Lake Isles, Heritage Isles, Live Oak Preserve, and Grand Hampton.  The main reason for this is because the community of Hunter’s Green was already almost fully developed prior to the real estate boom.  There were still quite a few sales in Hunter’s Green between 2005 and 2007, but not like the other communities where almost ALL of the sales took place during that period.  Still, many people in Hunter’s Green refinanced their homes or took out home equity loans and those that did are probably in a situation now where they have little or no equity and could not sell their home for what they owe. 

I’ve completed several successful short sales in Hunter’s Green and one of the problems that arose in each case was an HOA lien.  Hunter’s Green doesn’t have a CDD, but the community does have a significant HOA fee.  On short sales that have a CDD, the fee is lumped in with the taxes and when it goes to the lender for short sale approval, the lender rarely questions it.  But with an HOA it’s a different story.  Home Owners Associations, like the one in Hunter’s Green, can and do put liens on the home for unpaid fees as well as any fines and attorney’s fees.  On one short sale I did in Hunter’s Green, the homeowner was behind on their HOA dues by about $2500, but the homeowner didn’t have the means to properly maintain the home and lot to the strict standards of the HOA and they received fines for things such as not pressure washing their roof, not trimming their trees,  not having enough mulch in the plant beds, and parking in their driveway (in Hunter’s Green you are NOT allowed to park in the driveway, your car must be parked inside the garage and the garage door must be closed).  Each of these instances and/or HOA violations came with a fine and together with late fees and attorney’s fees, the total lien on the home was almost $20,000!  The homeowner had tried for months to negotiate these charges with the HOA board, but the board was not willing to reduce the fees for the homeowner.  With the short sale though, the board was willing to reduce the fees to about 25% ($5,000) to release the lien.  The Seller’s lender agreed to pay these back fees because they had to be taken care of for the title to convey to the new owner and the current homeowner did not have the means to pay them.

I still run into people who think that if they do a short sale they will have to come to closing with a check, but this is simply not true!  I was in Hunter’s Green just this last weekend talking to a homeowner who was going through a divorce and needing to sell her house.  When I asked her if she needed to do a short sale, she said her mortgage was about $240,000 and her home was worth about $180,000, but she didn’t have enough money to pay a Realtor so she was going to try to sell the home herself.  With a short sale, the homeowner DOES NOT PAY the Realtor, rarely pays for any liens attached to the property, does not pay for past due taxes, and sometimes they even get a nominal amount back from the lender to facilitate moving!!

If you think you might be in a position to short sale your home in Hunter’s Green and have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at 813.454.7532 or Loree@welovetampa.com

Need to short sale your New Tampa Home?

• Do you owe more than your home is worth?
• Are  you having trouble making your mortgage payments?
• Do you want to AVOID FORECLOSURE?
• Do you want to sell your home, but there isn’t enough equity to pay for closing costs and Realtor fees and you’re not able to bring money to the closing table?

I’ve  helped many homeowners walk away from their homes without having to pay anything at all.  In fact, I’ve actually been able to get the banks to pay the homeowner for moving expenses in some cases!  If you have a home in New Tampa or Wesley Chapel and it is in danger of foreclosure please give me a call.  I have both experience and specialized education to handle short sales.   Communities such as those in New Tampa (Grand Hampton, Hunter’s Green, Live Oak Preserve, Heritage Isles, Tampa Palms, Arbor Greene, Cory Lake Isles, Seven Oaks, Lexington Oaks, etc.) have pretty substantial HOA fees which can complicate a short sale.  You really need to use a Realtor who has experience to get these negotiated or included in the short sale. 

There are a lot of short sales in Grand Hampton, Heritage Isles, Live Oak Preserve and Cory Lake Isles just due to when the majority of the homes were purchased (2005-2006).  A short sale is nothing to be embarrassed of.  The market declined significantly and by working with your Lender, you are doing the responsible thing and making the best of an unfortunate situation.  Many of my neighbors in Grand Hampton are doing short sales and it’s a much better alternative than foreclosure.  With so many short sales in these New Tampa communities, it’s just about impossible to compete and sell your home in a traditional sale.  Many of the homes have dropped to half of the value they were purchased for!  This might be manageable on a $100k home, but on a $500k home  or even a $300k home it could take a decade or more of huge mortgage payments just to be right side up in the mortgage again.

Please call me if you are in a situation where you owe more than your home is worth.  I can help and depending on your goals (staying in the home as long as possible, selling the home as quickly as possible, etc.) we can devise a plan together to make this a win-win situation.  There is NO FEE to do a short sale with me and NO CANCELLATION FEE should you change your mind.

New Tampa Short Sale Myths

This is a list of the most common misunderstandings I’ve run into with short sales:

1.  Short Sales are difficult and rarely get approved.  This is simply not true.  They are more involved than a regular sale, but they aren’t that difficult, especially for the Seller.  It is the Realtor and Title company that have the additional follow up duties.  The homeowner has to complete an initial package including a hardship letter, tax returns, bank statements, paystubs, and a simple financial worksheet and authorization letter but that’s a small amount of work for getting a huge amount of debt off your plate!

2.  You have to be behind on your payments before your lender will consider a short sale.  When short sales first began to gain momentum, this was true.  However, I work with several lenders who actually encourage short sales and solicit their at risk customers trying to get them to do a short sale even if they aren’t late on payments!  The truth is, most lenders would much rather sell short than foreclose.

3.  Buyers are not interested in short sales.  This may have been the case a couple of years ago, but in my area (New Tampa) it seems like at least half of the properties for sale are short sales.  Homes that aren’t short sales are many times overpriced and can’t compete with the fire-sale prices of short sales.  Homes that have been foreclosed on and are bank-owned often have bidding wars and end up selling for more than they’re listed for.

4.  Listing your home as a short sale is embarrassing.  Are you kidding me?  Every other home for sale is a short sale.  The market dropped and our economy is in terrible shape right now.  There’s nothing embarrassing about working with your lender to sell a home that is worth less than you paid for it.  Now foreclosure on the other hand……there are public notices posted, you are served with court papers by the Sheriff, and eventually you are evicted if you don’t leave first.  THAT might be embarrassing, but a short sale is not.  There’s nothing embarrassing about taking action!

5.  I’ve already been served with a Lis Pendins, it’s too late to do a short sale.  The foreclosure process is anything but quick and most banks will put the foreclosure sale on hold once a complete short sale package is submitted.  A complete package must include a legitimate offer that is backed up by a preapproval letter or proof of the buyers funds.  I’ve been able to stop sales that were only a few days from being sold at the courthouse!  Banks DO NOT want your house back.  They don’t want the holding costs, additional fees and court costs, maintenance fees, etc. 

6.  I can only do a short sale on my main residence, not investment properties.  Investment properties can be sold short just like a primary residence.  The difference is that with a primary residence you will not have to pay taxes on the amount written off and with an investment property you might have to.  This depends on if you are considered “insolvent” or not.  Insolvency is when your total debt is higher than the total amount of your assets.  The IRS website has a worksheet you can fill out to see if you can be considered insolvent.

7.  It’s very difficult to do a short sale if there are 2 mortgages on the property.  It seems like banks have really gotten better with this in the last year or so.  Second mortgage holders usually get between $1-3k and leave it at that.  If the home is foreclosed on they will get NOTHING and sometimes we have to remind them of that during negotiations, but for the most part the lenders I’ve worked with have accepted an amount of $3,000 or less and approved the short sale.  One client I worked with had a second mortgage of $50,000 with Suntrust and the negotiator demanded that they sign a promissory note for $30,000 initially but ended up taking $2,000

8.  Any Realtor can help me with a short sale.  With a short sale it is extremely important to find an experienced Realtor.  More than with any other sale, a Realtor in a short sale can make or break the deal.  The Realtor has to be organized and submit the package to the lender.  He/she has to consistently follow up on the file and make sure nothing is overlooked.  Sometimes the foreclosure department doesn’t communicate with the short sale department at the bank so the Realtor must keep checking the public records to make sure the bank hasn’t accidentally set a sale date while reviewing the short sale package.  The Realtor can also have influence over the BPO (brokers price opinion) which is sort of like a mini-appraisal.  Of course it’s unethical to try to persuade the person doing the BPO to  make the home appraise at a certain price, but there is nothing wrong with letting them know what your offer is for and how you came to that number and show any comps that support it.

 

New Tampa is filled with short sales in Tampa Palms, Hunter’s Green, Arbor Greene, Cory Lake Isles, Heritage Isles, Cross Creek, Live Oak Preserve, Grand Hampton, Northwood, Meadow Pointe, Seven Oaks, the Hammocks, and more.  With lenders including Suntrust, Bank of America, Option One, Wells Fargo, Wachovia, BBT, EMC, and others.  Short sales are here to stay for at least a few more years.  Hopefully they will become shorter and shorter and fewer and further between, but for now they’re part of life.

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