Wednesday on Orlando Eats

Menchie's Frozen Yogurt - Half price Waffle Bowls ~11:30am-10:30pm.

K Restaurant - $5 Burger Wednesdays ~ 11:30am-2pm.

Jiko the Cooking Place- South African Wine & Cheese Tasting. $25(+tax & gratuity). ~ 3pm-4pm.

Terrace 390 - Hump Wednesdays - All-U-Can Drink (house wines & bottled beer) & All-U-Can Eat flatbreads $17 ~ 5pm.-9pm.

 

Urban Flats - Wine Down Wednesdays - Drinks & food for $20. ~ 5:00-8:00pm

TAPS Wine, Beer & Eatery - Wine Tap Wednesday $15 all-you-can-drink select wines and $3 select bruschettas ~ 5pm-8pm.

Lake Lily Park Maitland - Food Truck Café ~ 6pm-9pm

Firestone Live - The Tastes & Sounds of Downtown ~ 6pm-12am.

Relax Grill at Lake Eola - Trivia Nite ~ 7pm.

Wildside BBQ Thornton Park - Live Trivia ~ 8pm-10pm.

Enzian Theater - Wednesday Pitcher Night show ~ 8:30pm. Free

-Call to confirm information.

Mixed reviews for luxury homebuyer visa bill

Buy a house for half a million dollars and get a visa to stay in the United States for three years.

That’s part of a bill in Congress that aims to stoke the weak U.S. real estate market by attracting wealthy foreign buyers. The provisions are part of a bill co-sponsored by Sens. Charles Schumer, D-New York, and Mike Lee, R-Utah, that would change travel visa programs to attract more foreigners to America. But the plan is getting mixed reviews in South Florida according to the Sun Sentinel.

Critics say the incentives for foreign investors, as written, won’t attract many buyers. For example, the bill does not allow foreigners to work while they’re here, and it does not offer them a path to permanent residency.

The bill also would classify the housing investors as full-time residents, requiring them to pay U.S. taxes on their worldwide income. Many Latin Americans and Europeans now buy U.S. real estate as an investment but don’t stay full-time, so they won’t be taxed on their global holdings, said immigration lawyer Larry Behar of Fort Lauderdale.

The bill would let foreigners stay in the country for three years if they invest at least $500,000 in housing, including at least $250,000 for what would become their principal residence. The travel visa could be renewed.

Many Florida lawmakers are still studying the bill, dubbed VISIT-USA NS Some say they’re encouraged by creative efforts to reduce the state’s glut in housing.

“In Florida, if we can help the real-estate market, we can help the general economy,” said Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton. He said the terms of the bill could be tweaked to boost its effectiveness.

Travel leaders in South Florida give rave reviews to provisions that would modernize the visa process. It now can take three months for qualified applicants in Brazil and China to get U.S. travel visas.

The bill would let foreigners pay extra to get their visas processed within three business days and let U.S. officials interview applicants by video conference to speed approvals, among other measures.

But details of the travel visa-for-homes proposal are prompting the most concerns locally. The Schumer-Lee bill does not require that new jobs be created, something Behar is not excited about. Behar said the new bill might distract Congress from extending a different law that brings foreign investment to job-creating ventures. The employment-based visa program, known as EB5, is helping fund Miami’s Life-Science Technology Park and other regional projects and it will expire Sept. 30 unless renewed.

Said developer Mo Abbas, who promotes EB5 projects in Hollywood: “In my opinion, the bill will result in sellers’ inflating residential prices so their homes qualify for the proposed three-year tourist visa. What we need is long-term investment, not a quick fix.”

Source: the Sun Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), Doreen Hemlock.  

Fixed mortgage rates hover near lows for 6th week

Don’t expect much movement in rates over the short term, say 46% of experts polled this week by Bankrate.com. While 39% expect an increase, 15% predict further declines.

 The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage home loan dropped a smidgen down to 3.99 percent from 4 percent the previous week. It dropped to a record low of 3.94 nine weeks ago, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Mortgage rates tend to follow the yield on 10-year Treasury note. The yield rose this week after investors, encouraged by central banks’ joint effort to ease lending standards, shifted their money into stocks.

But the super-low rates aren’t providing a lift to the struggling housing market. Low mortgage rates haven’t translated into more home sales. Sales of previously occupied homes are just slightly ahead of last year’s sad sales figures – the worst in 13 years. New-home sales may be headed to their worst year in 50 years.

Some lenders say they are seeing an increase in applications through the Obama administration’s refinancing program, which was changed this October to allow up to 1 million more homeowners lower their monthly mortgage payments. According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, government-assisted loans account for only a small portion of refinancing applications.

Sunday in and around Orlando

Looking for something to do in and around Orlando on Sunday? Here are a few suggestions. Some are FREE! Enjoy!

Casa Feliz - Music at the Casa 12:00-3:00pm. Free

Mennello Museum - Family Day Free Admission ~ 12:30pm-4pm.

Dandelion Communitea Cafe- Sparkle Handmade Holiday Market & Winter Wellness Festival ~ 11am-8pm.

Celebration Farmer's Market- 9:00am-2:00pm

Maitland Farmer's Market - 9:00am-2:00pm

Lake Eola Park - Orlando Farmer's Market 10:00-4:00 pm.

Sam Flax - Market Sundays ~11:00-4:30pm. Artists, Musicians, & Food Trucks.

Kilwins Winter Park - Fabulous Fudge - Buy One Slice, Get One Slice (mix & match) ~ 12:00pm.-8:30pm.

The Oceanaire Seafood Room - $1 Oyster at the Bar. ~ 5:00pm.10:00pm.

CRAVE- All You Can Eat Prime Rib & Crab Legs $29.95 + Kids Eat Free. $19.95 Bottle of Wine.

-Call to confirm information.

Saturday Shows- Orlando Goings On:

Winter Park Playhouse - Anything Cole! $38 ~ 7:30pm.

SAK Comedy Lab - Duel of Fools ~ 7:30pm & 9:30pm $15/$12 FL Resident.

Hamburger Mary's - Cabaret Dinner Show ~ 7:30pm & 8:30pm.

Improv Comedy Club ~ 7:30pm & 10:15pm

The Bach Festival Society - A Classic Christmas ~ 7:30pm-9pm.

Treasure Tavern - Dinner & Show $60.65 ~ 8pm.

Theatre Downtown - A Christmas Carol $20 ~ 8pm. * (Takes place other nights as well.)

Orlando Shakespeare Theater - A Tuna Christmas $26-$38 ~ 8pm.

-Call before you go to confirm information.

Florida Real Estate Market Snapshot

Key trends affecting the Florida residential market include strong demand from international buyers, a growing population – 348 people a day net growth in 2010-11 – and an upswing in employment.

Inventories of for-sale homes have fallen to 7.4 months on a statewide average, and just 5.4 months for listings priced under $250,000.

Bank-owned properties (REOs or “real estate owned”) now constitute about 6 percent of inventory, but 40 percent of sales.

Short sales, where the market value of the home is below the mortgage loan value, make up about 31 percent of current inventory and 18 percent of sales.

Property management and leasing will be an increasingly important segment of the market in 2012, reaching $11 billion or more, due to the large numbers of investor buyers and multifamily buildings with few owners.

In the Florida commercial  real estate markets, investors are increasingly interested in buying office, retail and industrial properties. Vacancy rates, while high, have stabilized, along with rental rates. Lenders are getting more realistic regarding the pricing needed to dispose of their distressed commercial properties. There is a lot of existing commercial space that needs to be absorbed.   
 
Vacant Land-Overall, Florida has about 34.7 million acres of land, with only 3 million acres now developed. Local, state and federal governments own about 10 million acres. Florida has seen a 34 percent decrease in its citrus acreage in the last six years.
Source: Realtors® 2012 Real Estate and Economic Forecast Conference

Fla.’s housing market bouncing back according to leading U. S. economists

Despite national and global headwinds, Florida’s real estate market is entering 2012 on an upward trend, according to three leading U.S. economists : Dr. John Tuccillo for Florida Realtors, Mark Vitner for Wells Fargo, and Dr. Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors.

Looking around the state, Vitner said Jacksonville’s unemployment rate has dropped and home prices are stabilizing. In Orlando, prices have not yet reached bottom, he said, but the winter tourism season should help the regional economy. Tampa and Southwest Florida have seen solid job growth, with little new home construction. South Florida’s economy is growing thanks to trade relationships with Latin America and the Caribbean, while in the Panhandle, Fort Walton Beach is outperforming Panama City and Pensacola, according to Vitner.

Dr. Tuccillo stated that in Florida, the homes today may be undervalued, and added. “That a buyer who plans to own the home for five to seven years can get some great bargains today.” “Our state is in a mini-recovery,” he said.

“Florida’s economy is recovering, with tourism and healthcare leading the way,” Vitner said. “International tourism has been particularly strong in Miami and Orlando.”

Dr. Yun, , said many Florida markets are showing sharp drops in inventories of homes for sale – a sign that demand is picking up and prices are stabilizing. “That’s a major change from just a year ago,” he said. “Buyers have stepped back into the Florida market.”

Yun said he was particularly optimistic about the outlook for South Florida due to international buyers. “Don’t be surprised to see a gain in home prices in the Miami and Naples markets in the next 18 months,” he said. “From there, the recovery is likely to roll northward to Central Florida and then North Florida.”

Tuccillo noted that foreclosed and distressed properties will remain a significant part of the Florida market in 2012, and that lenders are feeding these properties into the market at a gradual pace rather than pushing them out all at once.
 

Source: Florida Realtors®