REAL ESTATE MARKET WATCH: Call for Action – Ease FHA Condo Restrictions

By  //  June 16, 2016

only 13 VA approved condos in Cocoa Beach

Freddie Mac's latest Multi-Indicator Market Index (MiMi) finds that the Florida real estate market's rebound leads the nation. This provision applies to debt forgiven in calendar years 2007 through 2013. Up to $2 million of forgiven debt is eligible for this exclusion ($1 million if married filing separately). The exclusion does not apply if the discharge is due to services performed for the lender or any other reason not directly related to a decline in the home’s value or the taxpayer’s financial condition.
Looking to finance a condo purchase using an FHA loan? Good luck! Currently there are only three condo complexes approved for FHA financing in Cocoa Beach.

BREVARD COUNTY • COCOA BEACH, FLORIDA – Looking to finance a condo purchase using an FHA loan? Good luck!  Currently there are only three condo complexes approved for FHA financing in Cocoa Beach.

“It would also be nice if the Department of Veterans Affairs would ease their lending restrictions as well,” said Jennifer McCoy, Broker-Associate for RE/MAX Elite’s McCoy-Freeman Group serving Florida’s Space Coast.

“My team works with a lot of veterans that would love to finance a condo using a VA loan. Currently there are only 13 VA approved condos in Cocoa Beach so not many to pick from.”

However this easily change with your support.

A bill passed by the U.S. House and now before the U.S. Senate could boost the real estate market in a number of ways – or it could stall in the Senate and never make it to President Barack Obama’s desk for his signature.

Jennifer McCoy
Jennifer McCoy

In response, the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) issued a Call for Action – a legislative tool wherein all Realtors send an independent email to the Senate asking members to take up the bill and pass it.

The actual call-for-action task takes only a few seconds to complete because NAR completed the background work.

The bill, HR 3700 or the “Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act,” will “put homeownership in reach for more families, and we applaud Congress’s work to take us there,” said NAR President Tom Salomone, broker-owner of Real Estate II Inc. in Coral Springs.

“We look forward to seeing it advance through the legislative process and to the President’s desk, so it can be signed into law.”

Condominiums are often the most affordable homeownership options for first-time and lower-income borrowers, but there are barriers to safe, affordable mortgage credit for condos. HR 3700 takes a number of steps to address those concerns.

McCoy-Freeman’s Featured Property of the Week Is Canaveral Sands Ocean Front CondoRelated Story:
McCoy-Freeman’s Featured Property of the Week Is Canaveral Sands Ocean Front Condo

The bill includes changes that could make the FHA recertification process – an often expensive process that condo developments must repeat every 24 months – “substantially” less burdensome.

It also would lower FHA’s current owner-occupancy requirement from 50 percent to 35 percent and require FHA to replace existing policy on transfer fees with a less-restrictive model already in place at the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

The “Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act” would ease FHA’s rule that requires condo projects to have no more than 25 percent of the space dedicated to commercial use.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bobby Freeman
Bobby Freeman

Bobby Freeman, a life-time resident of Brevard County, has been a top Realtor in the area for two decades. In his first year as an agent, Freeman received a Rising Star award from his Brokers. Since then he has achieved numerous sales awards including the prestigious RE/MAX Hall of Fame Award.

Freeman, Jennifer McCoy and Nikki McCoy-Freeman are family partners for RE/MAX Elite’s McCoy-Freeman Group. Together they have more than 30 years of extensive experience in all aspects of the real estate industry and have sold over $300 million.

Among McCoy-Freeman Group’s achievements are RE/MAX Hall of Fame, RE/MAX Platinum Club, Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist (CLHMS), Certified Distressed Property Experts (CDPE), Accredited Buyer’s Representative (ABR) and voted Best Realtor in Brevard County.

The group has been featured in many news publications including CNN Money Magazine, CNNMoney.com, WFTV 9 News, News 13, WKMG News 6, Coastal Condo Living Magazine, Hot Retirement Towns Magazine and SpaceCoastDaily.com.

For more information log on to BrevardRealtyConnection.com

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