Coit Group Fine Homes

Now is the time to purchase new construction Trump slaps 20% tariff on Canadian softwood   WASHINGTON (AP) – April 25, 2017 – The Trump administration moved Monday to impose a 20 percent tariff on softwood lumber entering the United States from Canada, escalating an intensifying trade dispute between the two countries. The president announced the decision during a gathering with conservative media outlets at the White House Monday evening. Trump's initial comments were relayed by four people who were in the room and confirmed by an administration official. On Twitter, Breitbart News White House correspondent Charlie Spiering quoted Trump as saying, "We're going to be putting a 20 percent tax on softwood lumber coming in – tariff on softwood coming into the United States from Canada." The Commerce Department later announced it had reached a preliminary determination and would impose countervailing duties ranging from 3 percent to 24 percent on import...

Major changes coming to credit score calculations          The math behind your credit score is getting an overhaul, with changes big enough that they might alter the behavior of both cautious spenders as well as riskier borrowers. Most notably for those with high scores: Abiding by the golden rule of "don't close your credit card accounts" may now hurt your standing. On the other side, those with low scores may benefit from the removal of civil judgments, medical debts and tax liens as factors. Beyond determining whether someone gets approved for a credit card, a credit score can affect what interest rate and what spending limit are offered. The new method is being implemented later this year by VantageScore, a company created by the credit bureaus Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. It's not as well-known as Fair Isaac Corp., whose FICO score is used for the vast majority of mortgages. But VantageScore handled 8 billion account applications last y...

Forget millennials: Gen X driving today’s market                 Millennials often get all the attention, but members of Generation X are really the ones driving the housing market lately. Gen Xers – adults between the ages of 37 and 51 – make up the second largest share of home buyers, comprising 28 percent in 2016, according to data from the National Association of Realtors ®  (NAR). They're also buying the largest, most expensive homes compared to any other generation. The median price of homes purchased by Gen X buyers is $261,000, and the median size of the homes is 2,100 square feet, according to NAR. Further, Gen Xers boast a median household income of $106,600 – higher than any other generation. Some Gen Xers are drawn to previously owned homes for their charm and character, while others prefer new homes so they can customize design features, NAR data shows. Gen X buyers are also the most likely to purc...

Could rising mortgage rates be good for housing? The Federal Reserve is finally taking more action to raise its short-term rates. Last week, it voted to raise the Fed funds rate by 25 basis points. That is expected to add pressure to mortgage rates, too. Many housing analysts fear that rising mortgage rates could further impact home affordability and lead home buyers to pause. However, Rick Sharga, executive vice president of Ten-X and former senior vice president at RealtyTrac, disagrees. He thinks the rise in mortgage rates could prove to be a good thing for the housing market. He argues that it will cause buyers to get off the fence faster and move into the market sooner – before rates go any higher. He expects that to help increase home sales in 2017. Sharga also believes higher rates will cause lenders to loosen some of the tight underwriting standards that have plagued the housing market the last few years and prevented many would-be borrow...

Downtown Tampa Florida Home Values Rise 9.2% In 2016  Florida's housing market had higher median prices and fewer all-cash sales in December, according to the latest housing data released by Florida Realtors ® . Sales of single-family homes statewide totaled 22,332 last month, up 0.8 percent from December 2015. "The trend of tight housing supply continued to have an impact on Florida's housing market in December," says 2017 Florida Realtors President  Maria Wells, broker-owner with Lifestyle Realty Group in Stuart .   "Last month,  statewide median sales prices for both single-family homes and townhouse-condo properties rose year-over-year for 61 months in row . While that's good news for sellers, it's continuing to put pressure on inventory for first-time homebuyers and those who may be looking for their next 'move-up' home. "And that's where your local Realtor comes in – he or she will put their expertise to work for you to succ...

Builders predict big expansion in construction Construction of single-family homes is expected to gradually rise this year, as a growing economy, solid employment gains and rising household formation buoys builders' forecasts. Last year, the National Association of Home Builders projected 1.16 million total housing starts in 2016, which was up nearly 5 percent from the previous year. Now NAHB is forecasting a 10 percent increase in single-family production for 2017 and a 12 percent rise for 2018. Still, there will be pressing challenges as builders look to increase their supplies this year. "While positive developments on the demand side will support solid growth in the single-family housing sector in 2017, builders in many markets continue to face supply-side constraints led by the three Ls – lots, labor and lending," says NAHB chief economist Robert Dietz. Sixty-four percent of builders reported "low" or "very low" lot supplie...

Does home flipping help ease  affordability?   November 2, 2017  Investors have re-emerged in home flipping, scouring markets to find homes they can make over to earn a profit. The practice – once blamed for helping to fuel the housing crisis a decade ago – is now a welcome sign to some city officials who say it's helping to solve an affordability crunch. States like Florida and Nevada continue to have a large stock of foreclosed homes, and flippers are stepping in to renovate homes that, at the same time, help battle neighborhood blight and create more options for first-time and low-income buyers. In many cases, the flipped homes being sell well below the rest of the market. Industry analysts point to that as a sign that it's filling a shortage of affordable housing. "This flipping activity could be seen as a social good if it's bringing houses up to standards and putting them back on the market," says Steven Swidler, an Auburn University profe...