Homemade Default and Foreclosure Solutions

As more people lose their homes to foreclosure, some are exploiting loop holes in the existing mortgage solutions. Residents in Tampa Bay have begun to sell their homes to friends or family via the short sale process. After the home is purchased, residents stay in their homes as renters with a payment reduced by 30-50%. Hopefully, mortgage lenders will begin to take notes from these residents and offer a loan assistance program that re-negotiates the property price and interest rate according to the current market.

For information, please read: http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/realestate/article633951.ece

Tampa Bay Shadow Market: Overnight Landlords Inspire Healthy Market Competition

As apartment occupant rates have fallen 1.6% in the first quarter of 2008, so have the rental prices. The shadow market--sellers renting their property instead of selling--has begun to restore affordability to the Tampa-St. Petersburg rental market.

From 2005-2007, the Bay Areas 10,000 plus condo conversions led to apartment renters being confronted with higher prices and limited available units. As the cost of living went up, employment wages remained the same.

Many did not prosper during the “housing boom.” Now, with the growth of the shadow market rental prices have begun to drop in the Bay Area as the competition in the market continues to increase. With this healthy competition have come problems with individuals turning into “overnight landlords.” Many property managers and realtors believe the market will get better as these landlords leave the market.

Rather than pushing “overnight landlords” out of the market, property services need to be created to support new landlords. “Overnight landlords” are not competition for the property management industry. In fact, these new landlords introduce the real estate industry to the needs of the independent property owner post the “housing boom.” As the real estate industry begins to respond to these owners’ current needs, the competition within the management, leasing industry will decrease and the market will stabilize.

In the meantime, healthy rental market competition increases housing quality and decreases rental prices for many Bay Area renters.

Downtown Neighborhood Association Board Votes to “Adopt” Williams Park

Williams Park, the City of St. Petersburg’s central downtown park and green space, is an orphan no longer. The Downtown Neighborhood Association (DNA) has voted to join the city’s Adopt-a-Park program by adopting Williams Park, located between Third and Fourth Streets North and First and Second Avenues North.

City staff designed the Adopt-a-Park program to augment the regular cleanup and maintenance performed by city workers and to engage neighborhood residents in projects that benefit their own neighborhoods by helping keep the community “clean and green.”

Like all neighborhood associations, DNA represents the interests of homeowners and residents. However, the Association also recognizes a special obligation to work toward keeping the downtown neighborhood as an attractive, safe place and active cultural, educational, business, and social center for all city residents and visitors.

Williams Park was selected in part because it is virtually at the center of the DNA’s neighborhood boundaries, Tampa Bay on the east, Martin Luther King, Jr., Street on the west, and 5^th Avenues North and South, extending down 4^th Street South to 11^th Avenue South, encompassing the USF campus.

Williams Park is also considered the city’s first park. Called City Park at its founding in 1888, it was later renamed for one of St. Petersburg’s founders. The first bandstand was built there in 1894.

Partnerships, Volunteers Sought

The Association will work to develop partnerships with other organizations and businesses, especially those whose buildings face the park. Among those that have built along Third and Fourth Streets or are in process of building are Progress Energy, the American Stage, and St. Peter’s Episcopal Cathedral. St. Petersburg College is nearby on Second Avenue.

Because Williams Park is the City’s central downtown park and major public transportation hub and is used by many residents, DNA will need many volunteers to help with flower plantings, cleanups, and to raise funds for buying needed plants and equipment. “The combination of partnerships and dedicated volunteers might eventually lead to formation of a ‘Friends of Williams Park’ group,” says DNA president Marilyn Olsen.

To volunteer to take part in the Williams Park project, email molsen@mailq.us Signups will also be possible at DNA’s July 10 meeting at Sunshine Center, 330 Fifth Street North, beginning at 7 p.m. That meeting, which is free, will feature Tim Garling, new director of the Pinellas Transit Authority (PSTA), whose buses use the perimeter of Williams Park as a major downtown depot.

For more information on the Downtown Neighborhood Association, visit www.stpetedna.org.

New Pinellas transportation chief Tim Garling to speak on July 10

The public is invited to meet and hear Tim Garling, new director of the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA), at the Downtown Neighborhood Association’s (DNA) General Meeting on Thursday, July 10, 2008, at Sunshine Center, 330 Fifth Street North, St. Petersburg, beginning at 7 p.m. The meeting is free, and parking is available at the Center.

Prior to moving to a downtown home in St. Petersburg, Garling directed the transit agency in Portland, Oregon. Called TriMet, the Portland transportation system has been highly acclaimed around the nation as a model for other cities. In addition to bus service, TriMet includes a 33-mile long light-rail operation for which Garling was manager prior to directing both bus and rail operations. Earlier in his career, he was with the New York City Transit Authority where he managed operations for a subway line.

Locally and nationally, expensive fuel costs have led to increases in ridership for public transit systems. Simultaneous budget cuts for virtually all government agencies, such as PSTA, mean that Garling will be faced with balancing higher demand for bus service with a decreasing supply of that service.

In addition to discussing ways to meet that challenge, Garling will comment on bus rapid transit (BRT), how PSTA fits into the regional transportation plan, and, of particular importance to the environment of downtown St. Petersburg, long range plans for removing the bus waiting area from Williams Park. Following his formal presentation, audience members will have an opportunity to ask questions.

DNA president Marilyn Olsen also plans to ask for a report from the DNA committee focused on the Tampa Bay Rays proposal for a new waterfront stadium on the site of Al Lang Field. The committee is chaired by DNA board member and attorney Peter Belmont.

The Downtown Neighborhood Association is bounded by Tampa Bay on the east, Martin Luther King, Jr., Street on the west, and 5^th Avenues North and South, extending down 4^th Street South to 11^th Avenue South, encompassing the USF campus and nearby residences.

Like all neighborhood associations, DNA represents the interests of neighborhood homeowners and residents. DNA also recognizes a special obligation to work toward keeping downtown as an attractive, safe place and active cultural, educational, business, and social center for all city residents and visitors.

DNA dues are $15 per year and include a newsletter sent to members, a regularly updated online newsletter, opportunities to work on committees dedicated to improving life in downtown St. Petersburg, and four general membership meetings per year with speakers on topics of interest featured at each.

For more information on the Downtown Neighborhood Association, please visit www.stpetedna.org.

Upcoming St. Petersburg Events

June 19 - Juneteenth Candlelight Vigil
Spa Beach. 8 pm. Vigil in observance of the African American Emancipation Day. www.juneteenth-stpete.org or 727-743-6792.

June 21 - Juneteenth Family Festival
Campbell Park. 10 am to 6 pm. A celebration to commemorate African American Freedom. Music, comedy, career fair, drum making, head wrapping, community service information, arts and crafts vendors and food. www.juneteenth-stpete.org or 727-328-7086.

June 27 - 4th Fridays in Grand Central
Grand Central Business District, from 1st Ave. N to 1st Ave S and from 19th St. to 31st St. N. 5 pm to 9 pm. Shops, nightspots, and businesses open late with specials, entertainment and more. A Florida Main Street Community. Free. www.grandcentraldistrict.org. 727-328-7086

June 28 - St. Pete Pride
Grand Central District, Central Ave. between 21st and 28th St. 10 am to 4 pm. Promenade and street festival. Music, car, and motorcycle show, vendors, arts and crafts, films, community agencies and much more. www.stpetepride.com or 727-388-9435.

July 2-5 - Miss Florida Outstanding Teen and Miss Florida Pageant
Progress Center for the Arts' Mahaffey Theater, 1st St. S. Wed. at 7:30 pm preliminary competition. Thurs. at 7:30 pm preliminary competition. Friday at 2 pm preliminary competition. Saturday at 7 pm Miss Florida Outstanding Teen Finals and at 8 pm Miss Florida Finals. www.missflorida.org.

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

CONTACT: A. Hunt
AB Hunt Property Solutions
Tel: (727) 894-0604
Fax: 727) 894-0504
abhomes@abhuntpm.com
http://abhunthomes.com

AB Hunt Homes evicts traditional property management fees.

ST. PETERSBURG, FL, May 30, 2008 – Responding to the demands of the housing market and community housing trends, AB Hunt Property Solutions recently launched AB Hunt Homes, a program providing homeowners with a dependable, cost-free alternative to traditional property management.

After establishing a successful property management agency, business owner A. Hunt found that monthly fees and strict contracts did very little to truly service homeowners, their tenants or the community. Disappointed to see homeowners losing hard-earned income to secure their investments, she revised her business model and eliminated property management fees.

“In 2008, property owners should not pay for their real estate investment to be managed. Rather management fees should be built into the cost and business structure like other financial investments,” said A. Hunt.

AB Hunt Homes immediately found that the renter’s and owner’s quality of life increased with the revised business model. AB Hunt Homes rents directly from the owner with a secure two-year lease before placing and managing qualified occupants. By acting as a professional tenant, AB Hunt Homes assumes all legal accountability and responsibility for the upkeep of the home. Owners receive guaranteed rent no later than the third of each month. Lawn maintenance, pest control and pool care are handled by AB Hunt Homes at no additional cost.

Since breaking out of the traditional property management model, AB Hunt Property Solutions has focused more on the needs of St. Petersburg’s diverse rental population. AB Hunt Homes offers client renters the benefits and conveniences of large apartment complexes with the comforts of a single family home. AB Hunt Homes also develops personal solutions and offers flexible lease terms for a wide base of client renters including service professionals, college students, and seasonal business travelers. In exchange for enhanced service, benefits, and conveniences, client renters are held to a high standard.

“Regardless of the economic or political landscape, everyone deserves a home and security without having to pay unnecessary extra costs,” said Hunt.

About AB Hunt Property Solutions:

Located in downtown St. Petersburg, AB Hunt Property Solutions services the property needs of individuals and the community. AB Hunt Property Solutions prides itself with staying in touch with the character and needs of St. Petersburg.

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