Mark your calendar
MAY 12-13 & 19-20

PLATINUM SPONSOR:
City of Tallahassee Natural Gas

GOLD SPONSORS:
ES Green & Company, Florida Green Building Coalition, Tallahassee Democrat

SILVER SPONSORS:
Capelouto Termite and Pest Control, Capital City Bank, Jenkins Brick & Tile Company, Molly Maid of Leon County, Roberts Sand Company, Sellers Tile,South Georgia Brick Company

There are 22 entries in the Tallahassee Builders Association’s 2012 Parade of Homes™. The homes and remodeled projects will be available for viewing on the weekends of May 12-13 and May 19-20. Saturday hours are 10 am to 6 pm; Sunday hours are Noon to 6 pm and admission is FREE.

The official Parade of Homes™ guides will be available starting Monday, May 7, at the eleven Publix stores in Tallahassee. TBA’s Parade of Homes charity is Second Harvest, which will have collection barrels available at the Publix stores for food donations through May 21. Join TBA in the goal to Stamp Out Hunger in our community.

Here’s a list of the 22 entries and the communities where they can be found (in parentheses).

1. Premier Fine Homes (Summerlake)
2. Adams Quality Homes (Observation Pointe)
3. Powerhouse Construction (Adrion Woods)
4. Premier Fine Homes (Adrion Woods)
5. Bill Kimberl Construction (Betton Hills)
6. Turner Legacy Homes (Park Charleston)
7. Premier Fine Homes (Southwood)
8. Premier Fine Homes (Bull Run)
9. Panhandle Building Services (Hollystone)
10.Alexander Dinkelman (Ocleon Drive off Thomasville Road)
11.Foundation Homes (Southwood)
12.Tricon Builders (Summerbrooke)
13.Hartsfield Construction (Greystone)
14.Premier Fine Homes (Buckhead)
15.Barton Construction (Southwood)
16.White Oak Construction (Centerville Conservation Community)
17.White Oak Construction (Centerville Conservation Community)
18.Panhandle Building Services (Centerville Conservation Community)
19.Ertl Homes (Preakness Point)
20.Kessler Construction (Washington Highway, Monticello)
21.D STICH Construction Services (remodel) (Lake Bradford)
22.GBGH Construction (Remodel) (Lafayette Park)

Generous Parade of Homes™ sponsors are:

Platinum: City of Tallahassee Natural Gas… Your Own Utilities.

Gold: Champion Chevrolet, ES Green & Company, Florida Green Building Coalition, and the Tallahassee Democrat.

Silver: Capelouto Termite and Pest Control, Capital City Bank, Jenkins Brick & Tile Company, Molly Maid of Leon County, Roberts Sand Company, Sellers Tile, and South Georgia Brick Company.

The hard-working Parade of Homes™ Committee is chaired by Mark Worley with members Tom Asbury, Thomas Asbury, Bob Carnes, Jane Conn, Chris Counts, Garth Easton, Lori Elliott, Lee Ann Everhart, Jason Hhazvini, Laura Hewitt, Ralph Hippard, Alexandra Kauffman, Vicki O’Neil, Nancy Paul, Kristina Petrandis, Wade Shapiro, Carol Ann Williams, and Don Wise.

CoreLogic’s latest home price index, which includes distressed sales, shows a slight month-over-month nationwide increase of 0.6 percent in home prices from February to March. But some markets are seeing much more of a price boost this spring, including Florida, which ranked No. 5 overall for home price increases.

“This spring, the housing market is responding to an improving balance between real estate supply and demand, which is causing stabilization in house prices,” says Mark Fleming, CoreLogic’s chief economist. “Although this has been the case in each of the last two years, the difference this year is that stabilization is occurring without the support of tax credits and in spite of a declining share of REO sales.”

States with highest appreciation

According to CoreLogic, the following states had the highest appreciation in March (this includes distressed sales):

• Wyoming: +5.9%
• West Virginia: +5.3%
• Arizona: +5.1%
• North Dakota: +4.7%
• Florida: +4.5%

States with biggest depreciation

Meanwhile, the states with the greatest depreciation, when also figuring in distressed sales, are:

• Delaware: -10.6%
• Illinois: -8.3%
• Alabama: -8%
• Georgia: -7.3%
• Nevada: -5.8%

The past two months made up the best winter for sales of previously occupied homes in five years, when the housing crisis began. And the sales pace in January was the highest since May 2010, the last month that buyers could qualify for a federal home-buying tax credit.

February sales dipped only slightly to a seasonally adjusted 4.59 million, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday. That’s 13 percent higher than the sales pace last July and just below the revised 4.63 million in January.

Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, said the lower February’s numbers “should not detract from the key point, which is that sales are trending upward.”

The sales pace remains far below the 6 million that economists equate with healthy markets. And the number of first-time buyers, who are critical to a housing recovery, continues to lag normal levels, while foreclosures remain high.

Still, Florida Realtors President Summer Greene, a Realtor in Fort Lauderdale, said she’s getting multiple offers for listings. That’s been rare since the housing market went bust in South Florida.

“People don’t want to wait on the sidelines anymore and the change is very noticeable,” Greene said. “There’s definitely been a mood shift.”

The median sales prices of homes rose for the first time in four months in February, to $156,600. And the supply of homes on the market increased more than 4 percent in February to 2.43 million, which could signal that more homeowners became confident in the housing market.

There have been other signs of improvement in the depressed housing market.

Homebuilders have grown more confident in the past six months after seeing more people express interest in buying a home. In February, they requested the most permits to build homes since October 2008.

Mortgage rates are near record lows. And the supply of homes fell in January to its lowest level in seven years.

A lower supply helps push up prices, which lures more sellers onto the market and generally improves the quality of homes for sale. Rising prices also boost sales because buyers want to invest in homes that are appreciating in value.

A key reason for the brighter housing outlook is the job market has strengthened. From December through February, employers added an average of 245,000 jobs a month. The unemployment rate has fallen to 8.3 percent, the lowest in three years.

Still, economists caution that the damage from the housing bust is deep and the industry is years away from fully recovering.

Sales among first-time buyers, who are critical to a housing recovery, fell slightly last month to 32 percent of all purchases. That’s down from 33 percent in January. In healthy markets, first-time buyers make up at least 40 percent.

And homes at risk of foreclosure made up 34 percent of sales, down only slightly from 35 percent in January. In more stable markets, foreclosures make up less than 10 percent of sales.

For the past few years, the market has been saturated for years with foreclosures. That has put downward pressure on prices and driven away buyers. Many can’t qualify for loans or meet higher down-payment requirements. Even those with excellent credit and stable jobs are holding off because they fear that home prices will keep falling.

Sales are measured when buyers close on homes. Some deals have been scuttled before the closing after banks declined mortgage applications, home inspectors found problems, appraisals showed a home was worth less than the bid, or a buyer lost a job.

One-third of Realtors say they’ve had at least one contract scuttled in each of the past five months. That’s up from just 18 percent in September.

Sales were mixed across the country. They rose on a seasonal basis 1 percent in the Midwest and 0.6 percent in the South. They dropped 3.2 percent in the West and 3.3 percent in the Northeast.

Great American Realtor Days are two days set aside during Florida’s legislative session when Realtors converge on the Capitol to voice their opinions on legislative issues.

Members are briefed on the status of pending real estate legislation and meet with and lobby legislators.

2012 GARD Dates

Every 10 years redistricting occurs and the Legislative Session is held earlier in the year. The session dates for 2012 are Jan. 10 – March 9. Great American Realtor Days is set for Feb. 14 – 15. Register now and don’t miss this excellent opportunity for your voice to be heard in Tallahassee.