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Fannie Mae has announced they will begin paying 3.5% towards closing costs or an equivalent amount for the purchase of new appliances for buyers purchasing a property from their foreclosure inventory. According to Terry Edwards, executive vice president for credit portfolio management, "attracting qualified buyers to the market and reducing the inventory of vacant homes is critical to stabilizing neighborhoods and helping the market recover."

Obviously, Fannie is looking to try and clear some of the roughly 50,000 properties it currently has available for sale in its inventory. The offer is available to any "primary owner occupied purchase" that closes on a property listed on their website - www.homepath.com - prior to May 1, 2010. In addition, many of…

The end of year 2009 Fort Myers Beach real estate market statistics for both home and condominium sales are listed below. Fort Myers Beach is the "happening" place on Southwest Florida's Lee Island Coast. It offers every amenity you can imagine- from seven miles of wide sandy beaches, golf, boating, fishing and more than anything else - relaxing. The Beach as it's known, is eclectic and diverse. It draws visitors from all over the world and you'll find all sorts of folks from generations of families to Easter Break kids. There's nothing else quite like it anywhere in Southwest Florida.

Fort Myers Beach Real Estate Sales Data

Fort Myers Beach Home Sales End of Year 2009*:

• 110 Closed Sales (96 in 2008)
• Average Sales Price - $392,968
• Median…

After a year of struggling mightily to find mortgage financing options, buyers of Florida condominiums could see loans become easier to obtain under a program announced last Thursday by Fannie Mae. According to executive vice president Karen Pallotta, "The new program is meant to help Florida's distressed condo market as Fannie Mae continues to provide liquidity to the broader housing market in general.

Fannie plans to comprehensively review hundreds of condominium projects statewide that may not meet its current eligibility criteria for financing because of occupancy problems or high delinquency rates on homeowner association dues. The review will look at a the individual condo project's occupancy level, association dues, financial stability and property…

The end of year 2009 Pelican Landing real estate market statistics for both home and condominium sales are listed below. Pelican Landing is an upscale gated golf community with excellent amenities and is considered one of Bonita Springs premier communities.

Pelican Landing distinguishes itself by being the only community in the area to own a private barrier island on the Gulf of Mexico. The island includes a 32 acre beach park that residents have daily access to via a community run boat shuttle service. Residents can also opt for membership in the Pelican's Nest Golf Club. Its two 18 hole Tom Fazio designed golf courses are considered by many as some of the best available golf courses in Southwest Florida.

Pelican Landing Real Estate Sales Data

Pelican…

Last week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that FHA-insured homeowners experiencing problems caused by defective drywall may be eligible for assistance to help them rehabilitate their homes. In addition, HUD's Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program may also be a resource for local communities to help families facing financial hardship while trying to combat the ongoing problem.

Declaring defective drywall to be a FHA Type 1 Special Forbearance, FHA Commissioner David Stevens said "We're instructing our FHA mortgage lenders nationwide to extend temporary relief to allow these families time to remove problem damaging drywall and repair their homes." "We want to remove additional pressures for these families as…

After months of hearings, threats of policy cancellations and plans to exit the market, State Farm Insurance and the Florida Insurance Regulators have come to terms on the company continuing to offer homeowners insurance within the state. The announcement brings welcome relief to some policyholders and anxiety over having to find a new insurer for others.

The agreement allows State Farm to drop 125,000 policies beginning in August of next year and to immediately begin raising its insurance rates 14.8% on renewals. Officials for the company applauded the news saying it "recognizes the company's need to jettison riskier policies and raise rates to more adequately offset non-hurricane losses." Company President Jim Thompson said "it is an important step in…

The real estate market in Southwest Florida continued to boom in October and the rest of the state is doing quite well too. In fact, for the first ten months of the year, the Cape Coral and Fort Myers market area has seen sales soar 96% on a year over year basis and the Bonita Springs and Naples market area was not too shabby either, up 42%. The Sarasota market also joined in the fun, seeing sales rise 36% year over year. Port Charlotte did not fair as well, as sales were up only 4% for the month.

Overall, Florida’s existing home and condominium sales have risen on a year over year basis for fourteen straight months. And, for nine out of the last ten months, the statewide median sales price ($147,600 in October) for existing homes has risen over the…

In the last 24 hours, the Obama Administration has tried once again to put pressure on the lending industry to do a better job of helping distressed mortgage holders.

Yesterday they announced two new plans by the Treasury Department. The first is designed to basically try and shame the major loan servicers into doing more to move loan modification through the pipeline. Whether or not posting a weekly list of companies that are lagging in the administration's loan modification program is just mere political posturing or an actual process motivator remains to be seen. Their second plan regarding short sales and deeds in lieu of foreclosure may actually hold more real promise for the housing industry.

The program's official name is the Home Affordable…