Waterfront Foreclosures and Short Sales
It’s not uncommon for me to receive phone calls and emails from interested Buyers who state that they’re beginning their search for South Florida Waterfront and Luxury Properties, but only want to consider Foreclosures and Short Sales. When I explain to them that there’s very limited availability of such properties, they typically express disbelief and disappointment. South Florida’s Real Estate Market has drastically improved in recent years and a number of factors have impacted (and continued to impact) the availability of Waterfront Properties, both distressed and non-distressed:
- The number of Property Owners who are defaulting on their Mortgages has significantly decreased.
- In East, Waterfront, and other Communities, Property Values have started to increase instead of continuing to decrease as they had been for several years.
- Waterfront Land isn’t the majority of the existing Land so Waterfront properties aren’t the majority of the property Inventory (distressed or otherwise). The majority of Land is located West of I-95 and West of U.S. 1 in areas that aren’t very close to the Ocean, so West areas have more Foreclosure inventory to select from.
- Buyers who recognize discounted opportunities to purchase properties in South Florida have been purchasing large quantities of Properties in recent years. In South Florida, property sales began increasing in 2009 and have steadily increased since that time. Many of these Buyers are Cash Buyers (approximately 40% are Cash Buyers in the Single Family Home Market and approximately 80% are Cash Buyers in the Condo Market), so they aren’t affected by issues related to Financing, unemployment, and other economic factors.
- More Luxury properties are being purchased in the current Market than were purchased during the previous Real Estate boom.
- South Florida has the highest number of sales to Domestic Buyers from Northeast States and other States who purchase vacation properties. These sales are concentrated in Coastal areas of Florida, Southeast and Southwest, particularly Southeast, so our Market is much more vibrant and different than non-Coastal areas of Florida. South Florida is very fortunate to be a Global Real Estate Market and a major Travel destination. As such, we are not limited to local demand, nor held hostage by U.S. unemployment rates that affect Real Estate sales. Of the 50 States in the U.S., Florida holds the distinction of having the highest number of sales to Buyers from International locations who purchase vacation properties (California is number 2 in that category and their prices and Taxes are higher than Florida’s.) Since I specialize in East, Waterfront, and Luxury properties, I’ve had the pleasure of representing a number of International and Domestic Buyers who have purchased such properties and consistently work with similar Buyers.
- Banks don’t release their Foreclosure Inventory all at once and properties proceed through phases of the Foreclosure process at various paces.
- Many Foreclosures never reach the open Market for sale and are sold through Court Auctions or directly from the Bank to Investment groups who make bulk property purchases (read more about this here).
- Limited availability, discounted prices, and high desirability all contribute to Foreclosed Waterfront properties selling quickly and often at purchase prices that are above their list prices. I will also note that, as several Banks have started developing a more uniform and streamlined Short Sale process, Short Sales are often sold at current Market value, unlike previously when they were sold for prices that were significantly below current Market value. I’ve noticed the same for Bank Owned Foreclosures as well, with many of them being listed for prices that aren’t as discounted below current Market value as they used to be.
- The vast majority of distressed Condos (Bank Owned Foreclosures and Short Sales) have been purchased. With the majority of recently constructed Condos being sold out or very close to being sold out and with demand for new product continuing at a strong level, construction of several new Condos in East and Oceanfront areas is currently underway in various areas of South Florida’s Tri-County area (Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade) and it’s important to note that the majority of new Condos that are under construction are Luxury properties with prices over $1,000,000, which isn’t surprising when you consider the unprecedented, large numbers of Luxury property sales in the current South Florida market.
Listings of Waterfront Foreclosures and
Short Sales in Broward County
So, how many Waterfront Foreclosures and Short Sales are on the Market for Sale in Broward County?
Currently, 6 Single Family Waterfront Homes are listed for sale as Foreclosures and 21 Single Family Waterfront Homes are listed for sale as Short Sales. The properties are located in the Cities of Dania Beach, Deerfield Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, Hallandale, Hollywood, Lauderdale by the Sea, Lighthouse Point, and Pompano Beach. All are located on Ocean Access Canals.
Currently, 15 Waterfront Condos and Townhomes are listed for sale as Foreclosures. They are located in the Cities of Ft. Lauderdale, Hollywood, and Hallandale with Waterfront locations of Ocean, Canal, Intracoastal, and River. A number of Short Sales are also on the Market.
A variety of non-distressed properties are on the Market for sale and even though property values have risen recently, they are still significantly lower than they were during the height of prices in 2006, so when searching for properties, I suggest not limiting the search to Bank Owned Foreclosures and Short Sales. If you’re looking for a great deal, it’s important to keep in mind that today’s prices are, in many cases, approximately 30% – 50% less than they were during the height of prices in 2006, so many great deals are available in the current market. If you’re strictly focused on not paying current market value in the Luxury Market, the reality is that very limited property choices are available that fit such criteria.
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