Maybe I Missed My Opportunity To Sell

A report from the Naples Press. “Monika and Paul Gatto purchased 2½ acres off Livingston Road five years ago and signed a contract to build their dream home. This month marks a year since Collier County revoked the North Naples home’s certificate of occupancy, finding it was issued in ‘error,’ as the home had structural issues and didn’t comply with the Florida Building Code. It would take seven more months before city and county officials discovered rampant permit fraud that put into question the safety and structural integrity of the Gattos’ home and hundreds of others. ‘It was supposed to be our forever dream home, but instead we got a nightmare,’ Monika Gatto said of her contractor, Nova Homes of South Florida, whose countywide permit-pulling privileges were revoked this year. They spent their life savings, $415,000 for the land and $852,817 for the custom-home contract, mostly covered by the sale of their prior home. ‘They’re trying to bankrupt us, and it’s working,’ Paul Gatto said.”

From Kiplinger. “In many resort-style communities, annual HOA fee hikes of 10% or more are commonplace. According to Insurify, the average homeowner will pay an extra $261 in insurance premiums by year’s end; Florida remains the most expensive state, with average annual premiums projected to reach $15,460 in 2025. As a result, combined carrying costs increasingly outweigh vacation-home cash flows, especially when investors consider opportunity costs in today’s 4%-plus money-market environment. As real-estate attorney Jordan Lulich of Lulich & Attorneys, P.A. in Vero Beach, Florida, explains, ‘Older high-rise condos must now complete milestone inspections, often costing hundreds of thousands of dollars. In our market, despite the increase in Canadian sellers, foreclosure rates have remained low compared to previous recessions, and the overall real estate market remains strong, thanks to Vero Beach’s small-town feel and low property taxes.'”

“Florida condo-insurance premiums jumped 40% on average in 2023, according to a report from Naples, Florida-based realtor Ed DiMarco. Since 2020, some association-level policies have more than doubled. In 2024, average annual condo insurance runs $2,500 to $3,500 vs just $1,000 three years ago. If you pay cash, factor in 1% to 2% per year for upkeep, plus insurance, property taxes and utilities (roughly 1% of home value). With a 20% down payment and a 6% mortgage, annual carrying costs can exceed 7.5% of the purchase price. Example: A $400,000 vacation home could cost more than $30,000 a year to maintain. Ross Levin, founder of Accredited Investors Wealth Management asks: Would you rather spend that budget on renting or family travel?”

From WJAR. “The last few years have been very challenging for prospective homebuyers in Southern New England. However, Emilio DiSpirito, license partner for Engel & Völkers East Greenwich, says the market is starting to shift in buyers favor. ‘There is double the amount of active listings than there was last year at this time, and probably the most amount of listings in all categories that I’ve seen since pre-Covid,’ said DiSpirito. Woonsocket and East Providence and Warwick, West Warwick,” said DiSpirito, listing some of the best cities and towns to find a deal. He continued, ‘We’ve had several buyers walk into – even places like South Kingstown – and get $50,000 off of list price.'”

From WTOP News. “D.C.-area home sales have slowed and there are fewer potential buyers signing contracts than a year ago. Another perplexing question that arises from May statistics is the sudden drop in sellers, with new listings in the D.C.-area coming to a screeching halt. At the end of May, there were more than 10,000 homes for sale in the D.C. area, 41.6% more than a year ago. But new listings in May rose just 0.4%. ‘Some sellers are thinking there is a lot of uncertainty out there, we’re hearing about buyers holding back. Maybe I missed my opportunity to sell. I don’t need to, so maybe I will wait until later in the year,’ said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at listing service Bright MLS. DOGE cuts and the ripple effect throughout the region are now considered a major driver behind the increases in homes for sale throughout the D.C. area this spring. There is likely a second wave coming. ‘Are there are folks who have been affected by the federal workforce cuts here who are frankly waiting perhaps for severances and other payoffs to end later this year, and then they are going to decide to sell,’ Sturtevant said.”

From Colorado Biz. “After years of a fiercely competitive sellers’ market, Telluride, Durango and Crested Butte are experiencing a notable shift. While inventory is climbing, a cautious economic outlook and rising interest rates are prompting both buyers and sellers to recalibrate expectations. George Harvey, a veteran of 40 years in the Telluride real estate market, describes the current period as a ‘transition.’ Harvey attributes the downturn in the luxury segment, homes purchased for $5 million to $10 million, to a ‘nervous’ sentiment among affluent buyers. He’s seeing daily price reductions in Telluride, typically in the 5% to 10% range, indicating a growing willingness from sellers to adjust.”

“Heather Erb, a Durango-area Realtor, highlights a significant increase in inventory, particularly in rural Bayfield and the Purgatory Resort area. ‘When La Plata County’s real estate market slows down, we see it happen first in our outlying areas of the county and at the resort,’ Erb said. The resort area, impacted by a poor winter, has seen its single-family inventory jump from a four-month supply to 11 months year-over-year and condos from eight to 10 months. Across all three mountain towns, the consensus is clear: The market is shifting. While not a dramatic collapse, the days of rapid, over-asking sales are receding. Sellers are making price adjustments, and buyers, armed with more choices and economic caution, are taking a more deliberate approach.”

The Los Angeles Times. “Six couples and one individual who lost their homes in the devastating Los Angeles County fires are suing State Farm, claiming that they were misled by the insurance company and that their homes were deliberately and ‘grossly underinsured.’ State Farm, California’s largest home insurer, has engaged in a “multi-faceted illegal scheme” that is designed to ‘reap enormous illicit profits by deceptively misleading over a million homeowners in California,’ the complaint alleges. Of the seven households that are a part of the lawsuit, four were from Altadena, two were from Pacific Palisades and one was from Sierra Madre. Each of the homeowners had policies with State Farm, and some were underinsured by more than $2 million when their homes were destroyed by the Palisades and Eaton fires.”

“In one instance outlined in the lawsuit, homeowners wrote to their State Farm agent before the January fires to confirm whether the dwelling limit of just over $1 million would sufficiently cover the cost of rebuilding their Altadena home. The agent confirmed the amount covered the total cost to rebuild. After their home burned down, the estimates the couple received to rebuild were in excess of $3 million, the lawsuit says.”

Barrie 360 in Canada. “The Barrie housing market is at a crossroads. While still more affordable than the Greater Toronto Area, local buyers and sellers are feeling the pressure of high interest rates, economic uncertainty, and a cautious consumer mindset. ‘Right now, it probably feels worse to people than it did during the early days of the pandemic,’ says longtime Barrie realtor Peggy Hill. ‘We’re seeing hesitation, especially from second-time sellers who are nervous about upgrading. They’re asking, ‘What if I lose my job? What if rates go up again?’ Despite the anxiety, Hill remains optimistic about Barrie’s position. ‘We’ve always had a sweet spot in Simcoe County,’ she explains. ‘First-time buyers can still find homes here, and that’s the breath of every market. You don’t see that in Toronto, where people aren’t buying little boxes in the sky.'”

“Inventory remains tight, and while prices have corrected from their 2022 highs, affordability is still a challenge. ‘Our town homes were pushing a million dollars at one point,’ Hill recalls. ‘That’s not sustainable. People aren’t going to pay that and then sit on the 400 for 90 minutes to get to work.'”

This Is Money. “The scrapping of the ‘non-dom’ tax regime has produced one set of beneficiaries: families wanting to move to London’s poshest parts. Areas such as Belgravia and Knightsbridge, with their white stucco terraces, are suddenly within reach of well-off families previously exiled as prices are slashed by up to 40 per cent. Becky Fatemi of estate agent Sotheby’s said: ‘There has never been a better time to start looking in Kensington, Knightsbridge and Westminster – the areas non-doms have typically left.’ By contrast £1 million-plus properties in Chiswick and other more outlying areas need to be trimmed by just 5 per cent to sell. About 10 per cent of non-domiciled residents have fled the UK, driven out by changes to inheritance tax among other shifts in the rules. Fatemi says a year ago some period Knightsbridge houses were changing hands at £2,500 a square foot. This has fallen 40 per cent to £1,500-£1,600. The average UK price is £300.”

Stuff New Zealand. “Just released data shows the capital’s housing market remains in a slump – down 25.4% since 2021. Some say problems present opportunities. Could that ring true in Wellington? ‘Values have tracked backwards slightly over the last few months in the Wellington region and the market continues to be relatively soft as we head into the winter months,’ QV Senior Consultant David Cornford said. The region’s average home value fell 1.4%, to $829,215, in the last quarter – 4.9% lower year-on-year, and 25.4% below the previous peak of late-2021. Wellington City fell 1.8%, Hutt City was down 2.3%, Porirua dropped 1.4% and Upper Hutt dipped 0.2%. While Wellington City has seen the biggest downturn, the glut of apartments that may seem a bargain are not attracting investors, given the amount of seismic strengthening needed. ‘This makes the insurance too high to be a tenable investment for landlords, even if the location is desirable to renters,’ Cotality NZ economist Kelvin Davidson said.”

From Vietnam Express. “Hong Kong pop star and actress Karen Mok Man-wai has purchased a high-end apartment in the city for HKD85 million (US$10.8 million), as celebrities and investors snap up prime properties at bargain prices. Land Registry records indicate that a 2,153 square feet three-bedroom unit on Old Peak Road, Mid-Levels District, was sold to buyer Karen Joy Morris on June 12, South China Morning Post reported. Several wealthy investors have purchased high-end estates in Hong Kong in recent months after prices plunged 45% from peak due to high interest rates. ‘The decline in home prices since 2021 is not just a cyclical adjustment,’ said Joseph Tsang, chairman of JLL in Hong Kong. ‘While cyclical factors such as interest rates, economic conditions, and supply-demand cycles can only partially explain the drop, deep structural changes are reshaping market fundamentals and asset values.’ With residential property prices close to their lowest in eight years, Hong Kong’s market had over 22,000 new home units available as of the end of March, a level deemed risky, according to local property agency Centaline.”