Wall Street Journal Report

Freddie Mac Eases Rules for Some Florida Condos

Freddie Mac said on Wednesday it would relax some rules that have made it harder to get mortgages for condominium units in Florida. The move could make it easier for some owners to sell their units.

Last year, Freddie Mac and its larger rival Fannie Mae tightened lending rules for condos, reducing financing options for buyers in troubled buildings, including those where a high share of borrowers were renting out units or were delinquent on association dues.

On Wednesday, Freddie said it would waive some of those rules over the next year on units where the mortgage was already owned or backed by the company. Real-estate agents have complained that tougher financing rules have put even greater pressure on prices by limiting the pool of potential buyers to those who can make big down payments. The change shouldn’t require Freddie to take on any more risk because it will simply trade one mortgage for another.

Fannie Mae, which allows exceptions to its rules on a case-by-case basis for established buildings that meet its standards, said in January it would institute a review of all Florida condos to provide a special designation for “sufficiently stable” buildings that would automatically exempted from tighter rules.

See Also: Condo Projects Currently Approved for financing in Tampa

Looking to sell or buy a condo in the Tampa Bay Area? Please contact me for more information.  Rae Catanese, P.A. , Realtor-Prudential Tropical Realty

CHANNELSIDE CONDO AUCTION! VENTANA-TAMPA, FL

33 Luxury Channelside Condos For Sale• Minimum bids from $145K  

Pricing Example: 

A 1 bedroom 2 bath condo, 1,143 square-foot condo at Ventana has a minimum bid of $145,000.  

It’s last asking price: $473,100.

Total units in building 84.  There are only 33 remaining.

  Maintenance fees are calculated at .33 per sq ft.

• Includes: water, trash, basic cable, concierge, wireless internet throughout entire community, pool, fitness center and 2 parking spaces per condo!

From Ventana Condos Channelside Tampa

  CLICK HERE TO SEE PHOTO SLIDE SHOW

With an intimate collection of unique residences, Ventana is a window to a world all your own.

Expansive picture windows illuminate each  residence with natural light and are the focal

point of open floor plans that spill out onto large terraces and balconies overlooking downtown,

Channelside and the waterfront.

 Designed by renowned architect Walton H. Chancey, AIA, and the Chancy Design partnership, these uniquely

gracious and sophisticated residences include concierge services, and exceptional features and finishes not found

in most urban residential offerings. More refined than lofts. More intimate than towers. This is Channelside’s

most livable take on downtown living.

 All condos have granite countertops, hardwood flooring in living room and dining rooms, tile in bathrooms, carpet in bedrooms, Kitchen Aid stainless steel appliances

33 Available units ranging in size:

1 b/2b                                   1,143 sq ft

2b/2b                                   1,381 sf – 1,521 sq ft

2b+den, 2 bath                 1,753 sq ft – 1,797 sq ft

3b/3b                                   2,541 sf  

 This is the BEST deal in Channelside and the BEST time to buy! Don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity!

When is the auction?

AUCTION will be held on Saturday,

November 14th at 1pm.

Previews of all condos are available by appointment until November 13, 2009

Please email: info@thetamparealestateinsider.com to schedule your showing and for further details. Or you may call us at 813 784 7744.

Rae Catanese, Real Estate Agent

•  All sales must close on or before December 28, 2009 (31 business days after the auction). 
• If financing you must use  Fanne Mae Approved Preferred Lenders:  MetLife and Bank of America. 
• 20% of the purchase price is required to obtain financing. 

Opus South condo developments to change hands 

Waters Edge Clearwater Condo

Tampa Bay Business Journal - by Janet Leiser and Michael Hinman

The winning bidder on unsold condominiums in two high-end Pinellas residential towers — Water’s Edge in downtown Clearwater and 400 Beach Drive in downtown St. Petersburg — is the lender, Wachovia Corp.

The bank, now part of Wells Fargo & Co., agreed to pay $30.6 million for the condos, plus undeveloped land adjacent to the $100 million Water’s Edge, in a deal expected to be complete by Oct. 16.

Wachovia, which holds an $82 million mortgage on the properties, was the highest bidder at an Oct. 1 auction in the District of Delaware, where developer Opus South Florida is liquidating through the bankruptcy court.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Mary F. Walmath approved the sales at an Oct. 7 hearing.

Three limited liability companies that have the same Charlotte, N.C., address as Wachovia Bank won the bids.

Water’s Edge Clearwater LLC agreed to pay $20 million for Water’s Edge where only 10 of the 156 units have previously sold, records show. The bank paid about $137,000 per unit.

The tower also has commercial space on the ground floor.

In addition, Redus Clearwater Bluff LLC will pay $1.6 million for adjacent undeveloped land.

On 400 Beach Drive, Redus 400 Beach LLC bid $9 million for about 21 unsold condos along with unsold retail space in the 93-unit building.

Atlanta-based Opus South, headquartered in Tampa until last year, filed for Chapter 11 on April 22, listing assets of $38 million and liabilities of $28.6 million.

It is one of five companies that form Minnetonka, Minn., real estate developer Opus Corp. Two others — Opus East LLC and Opus West Corp. — also have sought bankruptcy protection.

An investment group tied to the Tampa Bay Rays is the backup bidder on 400 Beach Drive. Downtown 400 LLC is managed by Randy Frankel and its address is Tropicana Field, home of the Rays, state corporate records show.

The back-up bidder on Water’s Edge is an entity connected to The Related Group of Miami.

NAI Tampa Bay broker T. Sean Lance said the investment groups were most likely testing the water to see how much Wachovia would pay for the properties.

“Those are two high-quality assets,” said Lance, managing director.

The Beach Drive units will sell for more than Water’s Edge, he said. “Downtown St. Petersburg is a much more vibrant downtown as opposed to downtown Clearwater, which is pretty sparse,” Lance said.

He expects the bank to evaluate the properties to determine the best way to minimize losses.

Wachovia will have to decide if it wants sell units individually or in bulk.

Most buyers, including The Related Group, are looking for huge discounts in today’s depressed market.

“The bid-ask gap is great,” he said.

Calls to lawyers at Greenberg Traurig, which represents Opus South, weren’t returned.

If you are looking to purchase condos in the Tampa, St. Pete or Clearwater area contact us:  813 784 7744 or email realtyrae@yahoo.com

Rae Catanese, PA-Licensed Real Estate Agent

View all homes, condos and lofts in the Tampa Bay Area.  Save searches, get neighborhood information and more!

I just received this and thought I’d share it with you regarding financing FHA approved condos in the Tampa Bay area. 

Major changes to Condo Approvals  

 As of October 1, 2009  ALL FHA condo approvals will be GONE.  We will be starting from scratch with NO approved projects untill Lenders start submitting approval packages to HUD.  It is imperative that realtors understand the need to move listed condos NOW and not to wait. We also need to advise the sellers that the FHA loans on the condos will come to a sreeching halt for a period of time. Buyers needed to move on the condo ASAP. Who knows when the project will get on the approval list.  If the project was approved after October 1 2008  the approval will be valid for FHA loans.

Please relay that to the buyer or loan officer so that they understand we might be in for some serious delays if they have to go and approve the building again….

If you are looking to buy a condo in Tampa Bay, and need to use FHA financing I have a list of approved buildings. Email me realtyrae@yahoo.com, or call me 813 784 7744 

Thanks!
Rae

Towers of Channelside Bankruptcy update-Tampa, Fl

Towers of Channelside 

The Towers of Channelside has been in receivership for the past couple months.  Receivership is a form of bankruptcy in which a company can avoid liquidation by reorganizing with the help of a court-appointed trustee.

During that time they have taken most of the condos off the market in order to re-structure pricing.  They are negotiating with the 5 banks that were investors in this luxury high rise; trying to determine what price they will sell the remainder of the units for.

There are several units for sale listed as resales, short sales and by the developer, but they represent only a very small fraction of the total inventory.

If you would like to be notified when new pricing becomes available (which I hear is going to be very aggressive) please send me an email: realtyrae@yahoo.com  with the subject Towers of Channelside.  You may also reach me on my cell phone @ 813 784 7744 for current availability opportunities.