Florida Stories | Housing Affairs Letter

Condo Investors Profit With Resales

Condominium investors in the seven largest South Florida coastal markets are earning more than 20% profits on condos bought in bulk during the real estate collapse, a new study by CondoVultures.com.

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Military Land In Property Tax Vise

Officials in Key West, FL are scouring legal documents to determine if the city can collect property taxes from private housing units on federal land. The findings could have implications on similar federal military properties across the country converting to private

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(CONDO ASSOCIATIONS) Ban Sought On Condo Foreclosure Fees

A bill in the Florida House to bar condominium and homeowners associations from collecting extra late fees and collection costs from banks could have a considerable ripple effect on such groups if adopted into law.

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(FLORIDA REAL ESTATE INVESTING) Foreign Investors Crave Florida Real Estate

International investors viewed 4 million properties per month on Trulia in Q1 2011. Reportedly, foreign buyers purchased $41 billion worth of residential property in the U.S. last year. Six out of the top 10 U.S. cities that were most

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(HOUSING PROGRAM SHUFFLE) Housing Development Watchdog Nixed

A bill signed by new Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) eliminates the 42-year-old Department of Community Affairs and its functions will be absorbed into the new Department of Economic Opportunity when it is created Oct. 1.

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(MORTGAGE INVESTIGATION) Curb On Mortgage Probe Continued

An attempt by the Florida attorney general to glean information from foreclosure law firm Shapiro & Fishman is blocked by the state 4th District Court of Appeal. The court upheld a finding of a trial court judge last

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(TRUENCY EVICTIONS) Public Housing And School Truants

Sarasota, FL Housing Authority (SHA) officials consider a move to evict public housing tenants who can't keep their children in school. If adopted, it would be the first agency in the state to apply truancy elimination as a

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(CONFLICT OF INTEREST) Conflict Clash Costs Florida City

A HUD inspector general audit shows the city of Deerfield Beach on Florida's southeast coast owes the department $395,298 because Community Development Block Grants were awarded to firms linked to a

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(FORECLOSURES) Foreclosures Convert To Public Rentals

Sixty-one foreclosed townhomes in Crestview, FL will be converted to affordable units for low-income families, part of the Obama administration economic stimulus effort. Many residents in the rehabilitated houses likely

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(GREEN BUILDING) Meritage Homes Opens Energy Efficient Community In Florida

Meritage Homes Corporation, a top-10 U.S. homebuilder, has opened a new energy saving community in Apopka, Florida

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