Florida’s housing market remained strong in October despite coronavirus pandemic

Florida’s housing market continued to be a bright spot for the state’s economy in October, even as the coronavirus pandemic showed no signs of easing. More closed sales, more new pending sales, higher median prices and more new listings were recorded statewide last month compared to October 2019, according to Florida Realtors latest housing data. Single-family existing-home sales rose 26.9 percent compared to a year ago. [Source: Florida Daily]

See also:
» Housing sales increase in Gainesville and Ocala
» Home sales surge in Sarasota-Manatee despite pandemic, shrinking inventory
» South Florida home sales soar in October
» Central Florida real estate market booming
» Buying a house in Miami is now more expensive than ever. Broward isn’t much cheaper.

Census survey: 51% of Florida homes aren't current on rent or mortgage

More than 51% of Florida adults say they live in households that aren't current on rent or mortgage payments — higher than any other state, according to data released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Those respondents of the Bureau's Household Pulse Survey also said they think eviction or foreclosure is at least somewhat likely in the next two months. The survey is an experimental study looking at how the coronavirus pandemic is affecting people socially and economically. [Source: Bay News 9]

See also:
» Survey: Florida tops nation in likely evictions, foreclosures

Florida homeowners may want to consider selling now

If you haven't checked on how much your home is worth, now might be a great time. That's according to FAU professor Ken Johnson. "If I was seriously thinking about selling today, today would be a good time to sell." Johnson and colleagues publish the BH&J index, which tracks conditions to help people decide whether to buy or rent a home. Johnson says that record low interest rates are bringing out more buyers, along with people from the Northeast who are looking to relocate to our state. [Source: WJNO]

Florida’s recent adoption of the Uniform Commercial Real Estate Act

As the Covid-19 pandemic has ripped through our local economy, certain types of commercial real estate have been adversely impacted. It is likely that many of these properties may be subject to foreclosure in the coming months. Every lawyer representing a lender or borrower will have to contend with the possibility of moving to appoint a receiver during the pendency of a foreclosure case—which conceivably has been made clearer with Florida’s recent adoption of the Uniform Commercial Real Estate Act (UCRERA). [Source: Bloomberg Tax]

Gainesville apartment boom may be overbuilt

Enabled by welcoming city policies, multistory apartment complexes catering to University of Florida students are scraping away existing buildings to rise near campus. But the party may be over, or at least nearing midnight. Since 2013, 4,695 apartments in complexes of more than 25 units have been built or approved in Gainesville. Those apartments have 11,945 bedrooms. Many smaller complexes have also been built and still more — large and small — are in the pipeline. They are going up as UF’s enrollment has been relatively static. [Source: Gainensville Sun]

ALSO TRENDING:

› Will property taxes around Tampa Bay be reduced because of the coronavirus? [Tampa Bay Times]
Several forms of government aid have been granted to Americans and their businesses in response to the pandemic. But anyone who recently received their property tax bills in Florida — they started going out at the end of October — may have noticed there were no adjustments made because of the coronavirus. So is property tax relief a possibility, and if so, who would get it, and when?

› Marc Anthony selling waterfront South Florida estate for $27 million [Daily Press]
Music superstar Marc Anthony would like to record a sale of his Coral Gables, Florida, estate, according to the Los Angeles Times. The Grammy winner, who bought the home for $19 million just two years ago, hopes to turn a tidy profit on his investment. The home is back on the market for $27 million.

› Miami’s Design District is expanding west — and turning old buildings inside out [Miami Herald]
The western edge of Miami’s ritzy Design District is being turned inside out — literally — to create a new wing for the luxury shopping and design neighborhood. The Market at Miami Design District, a joint venture between the New York-based Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance and the Miami retail leasing and development firm The Comras Company of Florida, will take 16 existing commercial properties spanning nearly a full city block and convert them into an open-air marketplace, with paseos and corridors carved out of the existing structures and storefronts on multiple sides of the buildings to give the area the feel of a village.

› With industrial goals gone, St. Petersburg considers housing on Commerce Park [Tampa Bay Times]
With the goal of creating industrial jobs on the locale once known as Commerce Park now dead, City Council members Thursday heard about a new proposal for the city-owned property. Townhomes and commercial space — with room for retail, office or restaurants — will occupy a 2.8-acre portion of the site, which sits along 22nd Street S in the heart of the city’s historic Black community.