Naples Real Estate News - 01/10/08

HOME PRICES - In the current housing market, buyer incentives and disguised discounts make it harder to track home prices through sales records. Buyer incentives – ranging from free cars or furniture to cash rebates – make those prices less reliable as a sign of what buyers actually paid.

Most multiple listing services require homes be listed for the price of the property

and not the incentives included in the price. 

FLORIDA PUBLIC SCHOOLS - Positive news for buyers seeking good schools: Florida’s schools ranked 14th nationally (up from 31st last year) on a report card issued Wednesday by Education Week magazine, although the state only ranked 38th in public education spending.

COUNTRYWIDE - Countrywide Financial Group continues to take a beating. Yesterday, officials announced that the percentage of borrowers who missed payments last month rose. At the same time, Countrywide reported about a 50 percent drop in new business for the month.

FLORIDA ECONOMY - Florida’s chance of entering a recession in 2008 could be as high as 60 percent, according to Steve Cochrane, senior managing director of Moody’s Economy.com. But other economists note that certain state industries remain strong, including tourism, grocery sales and commercial real estate.