This article from today's NWF Daily News shows statistics indicative of stablization in our local markets. Encouraging...yes. Still a buyers market...absolutely. Yet for those potential buyers who continue to procrastinate awaiting the "perfect" bottom, the tides appear to be turning. We'll see what the future holds for the foreclosure data and inventory next month.

July's preliminary figures are in, and for what appears to be the first time in months, foreclosure filings are no longer going up, up, up.

Filing of the form known as "lis pendens" signals the start of the foreclosure process. Since May in Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties, those filings have begun to taper off slightly. Okaloosa is down 14 percent and Walton has dipped 13 percent, while Santa Rosa is up just 4 percent. News of the slowdown in foreclosures was met cautiously in local banking and real estate circles, where local executives have been speaking recently of "bumping along the bottom." "It seems to be some stabilization and the beginning of an improvement," said Bob Bennett of First City Bank. "Hopefully, we're getting that traction and we can start on the upward slope. But there are so many different factors at work with the national economy."

Gloria Frazier, owner and broker of ERA American Realty of Northwest Florida, offered two theories on what the recent numbers indicate. "Hopefully, this does mean we're coming out of this slump and the bottom is here, or almost here," Frazier said. "Second, there could be more short sales that are going through. But either way, I think it's a reason to be cautiously optimistic about the future."

Short sales involve the bank or mortgage company forgiving a certain amount of debt and allowing the house to be sold for less than its original price. When that process began in recent years, the theory worked better than the practice, which turned out to be complicated and often dragged on for months. "A year ago, the lenders didn't have the process down as well as they do today," said Carmella Bell of Resort-Quest's real estate division. "It's more streamlined now and they have procedures to follow. That could have a lot to do with stabilization of lis pendens. Hopefully, people who are upside down in their mortgages are not waiting to ask for help and lenders are better prepared."

Even people who are not financially troubled and are trying to sell a home have come to dread the words "too much inventory" when it comes to what's on the market. Data from the Emerald Coast Association of Realtors' Multiple Listing Service reflects a slight decline in inventory from January through July in Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties.

In Okaloosa, there were 1,394 fewer homes on the market during the first seven months of this year than the same period in 2007. In Santa Rosa, that number was 364 fewer. In Walton, the number was down by 1,066. "It is also encouraging to note the average inventory of the three counties combined has decreased approximately 12 percent from 2007 to 2008," Bell wrote in an e-mail. "Albeit slight, this reduction in the inventory shows signs of a stabilizing market."

As the housing bubble grew in the early part of this decade, prices reached levels that previously were unimagined. But the aftermath of the bubble bursting appears to have introduced sellers to reality. "Many have reduced their price to a more reasonable listing, hoping to meet market demand," Bell wrote in her e-mail. "Or, if the market isn't demanding the price they want, some have decided to withdraw their property from the market and hold it for a while."

Brian Robinson of Resort-Quest's mortgage division agreed. "It's still a buyer's market, because more realistic pricing is where it needs to be," Robinson said. "You won't see a lot of 100-percent financing. People need that 10 percent or 20 percent down to get more skin in the game. That?s reality. And I'm also hearing from people who have been vacationing in condos here for years who can finally afford to buy where they've been renting."

Mike Roche of Northstar Mortgage Group had a similar take. "Have we come to a bottom? Are we starting to move or whatever? Nobody's got that crystal ball," Roche said. "But we're getting more applications for loans and that's a very good sign. Now's the time to buy when there's inventory out there and rates are still low (less than 7 percent). So many buyers were screaming two years ago, 'It?s a seller's market.' Well, it's our time now."

Well this oughta raise the hackles in Tallahassee. After all of the public outcry and subsequent legislature surrounding homeowners insurance in the State, this is a brazen slap in the face of the general public and the legislature as well. This really ticks me off...and I hope it does the same for everyone else...Here's the story...

TALLAHASSEE (AP) - State Farm asked Florida insurance regulators on Wednesday for a 47.1 percent increase on its homeowners policies in the state.

The Illinois-based company, which is the largest private homeowners' insurer in Florida with roughly 1 million policyholders, said the increase was necessary to continue doing business in the Sunshine State. "We've got to stabilize our financial condition so we can keep our promises to our customers," State Farm spokesman Justin Glover said Wednesday, noting the filing came after months of research by the company.

However, the large increase is not likely to go well with Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty or Gov. Charlie Crist, who pledged to Florida voters in his 2006 gubernatorial campaign that he would reduce insurance and tax rates for homeowners. Both men were traveling in Europe on a 10-day trade mission and were not immediately available to comment on State Farm?s request.

A public hearing on State Farm's filing will be held Aug. 12 since the rate filing exceeded 15 percent, said Ed Domansky, spokesman for the state Office of Insurance Regulation. The state agency will review the filing to ensure it complies with Florida statutes, the Florida administrative code and actuarial standards and that rates requested are not excessive, inadequate or discriminatory. Glover said insurer has spent roughly $1.20 for every dollar collected in premiums in Florida since 2000. State Farm paid out more than $4.4 billion in claims after eight hurricanes struck Florida in 2004 and 2005.

State Farm announced in February that it would stop writing new homeowners' policies in Florida and planned to shed roughly 50,000 homeowners living in coastal areas. State-backed Citizens Insurance is the larger carrier of Florida homeowner policies with roughly 1.2 customers.

As an out of state rental property owner, I can relate some of pros and cons of hiring a property management company to oversee your investment and maximize revenue.

The first decision you will have to face , as an owner of rental property, is whether to self manage or hire a professional property managment company. Some may see this as a no-brainer when faced with the property management fees you'll encounter in the interview process. Generally for our area at the beach, the number will run from 20%-30% of Gross Revenues. This is revenue that could flow directly to the bottom line net for you as the owner. But at what expense? By this I mean the value of time...your time and the effort you have to expend to secure desireable rentals for your property.

Some owners would rather invest their time and effort to secure their own rentals via the web (VRBO.com, Homeaway.com, etc) and keep the proceeds from Gross Revenues flowing into their own pocket. What is the impact of this approach as it applies to you and your your time? In just about every case, the impact will be time consuming if you want to ensure you maximize your rental revenue flow.

The first item on your agenda will be to secure a marketing website using a popular vacation portal such as VRBO.com. This process includes stating the price of your rental adjusted for seasonality, the terms of the rental agreement, check-in/check-out times, photos, property description, etc. This process is time consuming during the initial registration of your property, then it's just a matter of maintaining the website.

Next you have to locate a very dependable maintenance company for repair items that are the norm for rental properties. Changing air filters, light bulbs, running toilets, A/C issues, etc. When these issues arise, you must have a dependable company to ensure items are addressed in rapid fashion for your tenants. And you, as the self appointed property manager, will be the point of contact for any repair issues that may occur during the rental period. So be prepared to answer your phone at any time, day or night.

Securing desireable rentals is also very important. And by desireable, I'm referring to tenants that you would welcome back on an annual basis. These are the rentors you will want staying in your home and you want to maintain contact to keep them coming back. This is where you have to learn the screening process to find the right tenants. And trust me, the spring breakers are not the clients you're looking for when it comes to your property. Your screening process must be fine tuned and adhered to or you could find your phone ringing constantly with complaints about your tenants.

I'll wrap this article with a recommendation based on my experience self managing and using a property manager. Having done both, I would always recommend the use of a professional property manager. They'll have their own website, have an office staff to secure bookings and handle any issues or complaints. Maintain the property with contracted housekeepers and maintenance staff. They know the local market and will make sure you're pricing is competative when rentals may be slower than the norm. Books are maintained by the property manager where they handle all finances including rental income disbursement to the owner and filing of state and local bed taxes. And foremost, they are your eyes and ears at the beach, overseeing a very valuble asset...your beach house.

With energy costs spiraling upwards these days, I thought this would be a good time for a few tips on energy conservation. Read on for a few ideas on how to tighten your energy budget...

Clean or replace air filters regularly.

Set thermostat to 78 degrees when cooling, each degree under that increases the bill by 6 percent.

Set thermostat higher when leaving for any length of time.

Install a programmable thermostat.

Lower the water heater thermostat to 115 degrees.

Wrap the water heater in an insulated blanket.

Install water heater timer to come on only when you?re home.

Use compact fluorescent bulbs.

Turn off lights in unoccupied rooms and turn off porch lights.

Wash clothes in cold water.

When buying new appliances, look for the Energy Star label to ensure energy efficiency.

Weather strip and caulk around doors, windows, and electrical outlets.

Have your heating and cooling system checked annually to ensure efficient operation.

MLS Data January-June 2008:

133 Active Single Family Homes. Average price $1.706M. Average days on market 274

39 Pending Single Family Homes. Average price $1.572M. Average days on market 300

32 Sold Single Family Homes. Average price $1.301M. Average days on market 301

MLS Data January-June 2008:

43 Active Single Family Homes. Average price $2.168M. Average days on market 460

4 Pending Single Family Homes. Average price $1.921M. Average days on market 254

5 Sold Single Family Homes. Average price $1.6M. Average days on market 254

MLS Data January-June 2008:

86 Active Single Family Homes. Average price $2.141M. Average days on market 322

9 Pending Single Family Home. Price $1.887M. Average days on market 446

6 Sold Single Family Homes. Average price $1.508M. Average days on market 494

MLS Data January-June 2008:

26 Active Single Family Homes. Average price $994.7K. Average days on market 302

1 Pending Single Family Homes. Average price $1.495M. Average days on market 229

4 Sold Single Family Homes in last 6 months. Average price $972.1K. Average days on market 229

MLS Data January-June 2008

58 Active Single Family Homes. Average price $938K Average days on market 311

11 Pending Single Family Homes. Average price $656.1K. Average Days on Market 333

10 Sold Single Family Homes in 2008. Average price $561K. Average days on market 352

MLS Data January-June 2008:

9 Active Single Family Homes average price $2.346M Average days on market 296

1 Pending Single Family Home price $2.350. Average days on market 767

2 Sold Single Family. Average price $2.480M. Average days on market 429

Though statistics indicate Alys Beach has felt the effects of our market conditions, prices have remained steady and sales have been slow. The product offered at Alys Beach represents some of the finest construction and architecture found anywhere along our coast. With the "town center" beginning to take shape south of 30A, the buzz should begin to emerge, along with the buyers. Those who opt to purchase Alys Beach are buying, what will be, a fine investment moving forward. I don't expect much in the way of a downward price adjustment for this community even in our current market conditions.

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