October, 2013:

Is the government shutdown impacting home sales?

Oct 10th, 2013
by edsmith.
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In an indirect sense, yes it is. Specifically, one of the biggest impacts on the real estate market is the psychological effect that it has on buyers. As to VA, FHA, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, all is well. They are processing loan packages as normal.

An interesting development … Most all lenders had been requiring a form 4506 from the IRS when processing a home loan. This is a request for your tax return transcript. IRS is not processing such requests during the shutdown, so fortunately, almost all lenders responded by waiving the requirement!

For more info, please visit us at www.DestinFloridaRealEstate.com or for questions, email us at smith@realtor.com

Ed & Terri Smith, Broker Owners
RE/MAX Coastal Properties
850-837-5500 x1

Hurricane Karen… Really?

Oct 5th, 2013
by edsmith.
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First and foremost, there is no Hurricane Karen.  It is a figment of Jim Canotore’s brain.

Our airport is shut down, the Destin Seafood Festival is cancelled, the county has declared a “state of emergency” and cancelled all scheduled weekend school events, blah blah blah ad nauseum.

OK, we get it, err on the side of caution. But local reaction appears more a reflection of weather channel hysteria than reality.  Want to know what a storm is going to do?  Go to the docks or the downtown Destin Waffle House early in the morning and you will be in the company of the greatest weather prognosticators in the area. They all concluded early-on that this was to be a non-event.  Most folks around here trust them far greater than Jim Cantore or anyone at the National Weather Service.

Tomorrow will prove them right or wrong 🙂