Orlando Florida. Is now 18-03-2008 a good Investment Time?

S

sidzer

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Anyone know anything about property investment in Orlando Florida.

I've been looking at some web-sites and the prices look cheap and with the dollar being so weak and with all the banking turmoil - is this a golden opportunity?

I would be considering a place that would be near the key attractions and would let it out as a holiday let and some personal use. I've seen a 3 bed house with pool for $100,000 - this would be @ €65,000! These seem like Bulgarian prices in the US in a major tourist city with all year round sunshine...

I know that area is key in America and the above house is probably not in the best area in the city but the general prices across the board seem reasonable.

Anyone with any experience in Orlando or anyone who sees the obvious pitfalls?

Thanks.

S
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

I think you can get good value there now .Florida is a great destination and always will be . The usual LOCATION,LOCATION ETC is the key to a good buy. Even if your not buying at the rock bottom of the cycle you still cant go wrong now IMO. Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful.(W.B.)
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

Make sure that you are buying in an area that permits holiday lets. In my opinion, holiday makers want the gated community, covered pool etc thatw e always see on travel programmes, 5 mins from Disney and International Dr.

Slim
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

Do some research into the actual running costs of such a property - taxes, maintenance, agent's fees etc (I once read of someone being charged $80 to get a light bulb changed !) - they are far higher than sales reps would have you believe. IMHO the increased security at US airpports and the attitudes of security staff will deter more & more people from travelling there.
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

Yes, Now's the time............

PS Greetings from Orlando
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

We have a five bed with its own pool over there. There are a lot of things to consider when buying.
Does the place where u r buying allow short term rental (STR)
Have the community where u r buying have a strong home association (HOA) this is important as you dont want the grass growing up around your front door and a bad element taking the place over.
$100k seems a very small amount for a STR. Go over yourself and have a look, dont let some prop company here sucker you into buying just from them. Different counties have different property taxes I know Polk county is very high, we are in Osceola county and pay about $6k a year. If you want to know anything else feel free to PM me.
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

I'd say Bear Stearns is just the tip of the iceberg of what's to come....and would definitely hold out for a good while yet.
Why should property stop falling in price so soon, after years and years of false inflated prices, and what looks to be a mass amount of foreclosures yet to come?
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

Thanks for all your posts folks..

Going cold on the idea - county taxes are a big turn off - €6,000 PA plus management charges / plus insurances / plus repairs etc.. I might only use for 2 weeks of the year - it may not go up in price (probably not for a few years) - this would be an expensive holiday......

Maybe I'll just let out a place if I want to go over for a holiday..

S
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

sidzer said:
Thanks for all your posts folks..

Going cold on the idea - county taxes are a big turn off - €6,000 PA plus management charges / plus insurances / plus repairs etc.. I might only use for 2 weeks of the year - it may not go up in price (probably not for a few years) - this would be an expensive holiday......

Maybe I'll just let out a place if I want to go over for a holiday..

S
Click to expand...

Sidzer,

I'm thinking of buying over there too. My hope would be to let it short term for maybe 15-20 weeks per year and use that income to cover the yearly costs you mentioned. Any other posters think that would be a problem ? Is it easy to rent it out ?
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

You wont pay a mortgage, taxes, management and all the other expenses on just 15-20 weeks per year.
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

Yeh maybe but you will still need to put some work in. PM me for more if you wish.
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

sidzer said:
Thanks for all your posts folks..

Going cold on the idea - county taxes are a big turn off - €6,000 PA plus management charges / plus insurances / plus repairs etc.. I might only use for 2 weeks of the year - it may not go up in price (probably not for a few years) - this would be an expensive holiday......

Maybe I'll just let out a place if I want to go over for a holiday..

S
Click to expand...

Taxes and insurance are key.....got to check if you are anywhere near a hurricane path
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

I had several places in Florida over the past 10 years, but luckily got out in 2006. The prices in Florida are dropping at an amazing pace. Actual selling prices in my former town are getting close to a 40% drop from their peak as thousands of foreclosures hit the market. I am looking to buy back again, but will wait at least another year. Unemployment figures in FL are crashing and people are finding it hard to get a mortgage, which means things can still get much worse.

Hurricanes were always a worry. The entire state of FL is at risk. Even Orlando, which is 1 1/2 hours from either coast, took two very bad hits about three years ago. I think I paid close to $3,500 per year for insurance. I don't see this getting any better, and may go higher if they have a bad year.

Also, watch out for property taxes. In Florida your tax assessment is based on comparable houses around you. Lets say you buy a foreclosure for $125,000, but the tax assessment of your neighboring houses is still $250,000. Your house will get taxed on the higher amount, which could be over $5,000 per year. They are trying to pass laws to change this system, but it will be a long way off.
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

Had thought about buying in Florida with Weak dollar and post sub-prime bargains, but someone informed me that Hurricanes were a major consideration when purchasing a property in Florida, would this be the case and does it have an adverse effect on value, insurances etc..
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

Hurricanes should be a consideration when buying in Florida, but I wouldn't waste too much time worrying about them. You either get lucky or you don't. I have been through three and have had no structural damage, just a few trees knocked over.

Any Florida town could go 25 years without a hurricane or could get hit 4 times in a bad year. You just never know. Miami, for example, is the most exposed area in the state and has not taken a direct hit since 1992 Hurricane Andrew (very nasty category 5 storm did billions in damages). About 4 years ago, a town in Martin County (about two hours up the coast from Miami), took two direct hits in the same summer. They are still trying to rebuild today.

If you are looking at Florida, I would recommend two things. Avoid coastal areas or anything less than two miles from the water. Insurance gets more expensive as you get closer to the ocean as the damage gets more severe. Second, buy a newer house. Houses built in the last 10 years are built to higher building codes and will likely suffer less damage. Most of the severe damage that I have seen (roofs torn off) were on houses that were 20+ years old. If you buy a place in FL, make sure you have someone that can look after the place when you are not there and put up the hurricane shutters, if necessary.

Do hurricanes effect house values and insurance rates? They absolutely do for insurance rates. Not sure about house values, I look at it two ways. If your house survives a bad hurricane, while many other homes are uninhabitable, your house is in demand as a rental. For example, if you had a house in New Orleans that survived Hurrican Katrina, you would have a line of people waiting to rent it. On the negative side, hurricanes produce alot of ugly damage, which cannot be good for values.
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

A relative of mine is going to rent out his house (it is in a vey rentable area, in Florida) and is hoping to buy a 4 bed detached house with swimming pool that was $400,000 18 months ago, and is now $250,000 ! He has no mortgage on his current property so the rent will pay his mortgage. It really is a good time to buy, but it could get a lot worse yet but with a house at 250K, you'd wonder how much lower it can go.
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

My guess is that you will see that "400k" house selling for $180,000 by 2010, which is still too expensive for most Orlando residents to buy. The S&P/Case Shiller price index estimates most markets have at least another 20% to lose. There is a long, long way to go in this mess.
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

Whatever about buying in Orlando, Florida, what about selling there ?

I bought offplan and the property has not been completed yet. I dealt with the biggest property company that every body has heard about (but we can't say who it is). To say that they were uncrupulous is an understatement.

The problem is that if I bail out now, with the state of the $ vs € if I get my dollar investment back I still lose big time on the currency. For this reason I am looking at reinvesting in Florida - i.e. to get a good deal on an established property.

Can anybody recommend a property advisor who specialises in the Florida market ?
 
Re: Orlando Florida... Is It A Good Investment Time

HSBC released additional figures this morning (also reported on CNBC).

1) 5% of their US mortgages are two or more months behind on payments.
2) They see the problems in the US housing market extending into 2009.
3) They also say that it is increasingly likely that the US will enter recession this year.

Number 1 is a shock to me. Under normal circumstances that would be 1 in 20 homes with a mortgage that would be entering foreclosure proceedings. I don't even think HSBC were that aggressive a lender. That'll be a huge brake on any potential upside IMHO.

There's still apparently a long way to go on this story.
 
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