Forbearance continues for renters and owner occupants, but what about landlords?
Right now is a time to speculate on what the future of our real estate market will bring. The coronavirus epidemic has put plenty of service industry and hospitality folks out of work for months now. Homeowners and renters are protected from foreclosure and eviction due to the statewide moratorium put into place by Governor Ron Desantis. This moratorium has been in place for the past 5 months with extensions being filed every month. It was again extended until October 1st.
Although this protects homeowners and renters, investors who own rental properties don’t have the same type of safety net. If they are renting to someone who lost their job due to the virus they cannot take legal action as of right now and are on the hook for their monthly holding costs.
So how will this play out in the next year once this pandemic is over and all of that late rent is due? Landlords may take legal action against their tenants to reclaim lost income however the courts will more than likely be extremely backed up with these sorts of cases so something that should take weeks could probably take much longer. According to this article from Bay News 9 “The experts say, even when the moratorium is allowed to expire, families will not find themselves on the street right away. It could take months for foreclosures and eviction orders to move through the court system.”
Another option for these landlords is to sell their income properties and take advantage of this powerful sellers market to cut their losses and cash in on equity. If this happens this could be a big win for potential homebuyers. The inventory would increase and make the process of buying a home less competitive. With that said, we may not feel the effects of this until sometime next year when these cases get moved through court and tenants start getting evicted.
This is of course all speculation but I think this could turn out to be a positive for first time homebuyers in the Tampa Bay market. Investors may have enough incentive to sell their properties and neighborhoods that were once mostly rentals may see a surge of owner occupants. Homeowners typically take more pride in their home and neighborhood when they plan on being there long term so this in turn typically brings up the liveability of an area.
The New Pier
Splash pad at the new St. Pete Pier
In other news, The New St. Pete Pier is pretty great in my opinion! This 26 acre district was a welcome addition to Downtown St. Pete. I remember when I first moved here Downtown was lacking in life and now the new Pier is a demonstration of how much of this city’s potential has been filled. It’s a pleasant place to enjoy nature with walking/biking trails, outdoor art, plenty of places to sit and lots of beautiful landscaping. You can also get some sun at the beach, grab some food and drinks at one of the sit down restaurants or a casual bite at the outdoor made to order food counter next to the splash pad. In a relatively small Downtown, this project adds new dimension to our already thriving city.
That is about it. Thanks for reading and as always feel free to reach out with any questions no matter where you’re at in the home buying or selling process. You can email me at chrisformico@gmail.com or call/text me at 727-307-1111. If you enjoy our newsletter and would like to share with a friend feel free to send this article their way. Have a great day!
Recommended Articles Of The Month:
For this update, we’ll highlight some must-reads we’ve written:
Top 8 Things To Keep In Mind When Buying A Waterfront Home Near St. Pete, Florida – A 5 minute read that may give you some insight into what is important to consider when purchasing a waterfront home in this area.
Top 11 Reasons St. Pete Is The Best City To Move To In Florida – If you’re considering moving to the area you may want to read this!
Local News:
Here are some news stories you may love!
Sales For “The Julia” A 19 Story Condo launch in Downtown St. Pete– New condo tower going up next to the famous historic Flori-De-Leon.
Progress on Water Street Tampa – Check out the progress via drone footage of the 3 billion dollar project across the bay. Phase One set to complete in 2022 and Phase Two not until 2027.
Receive The Newsletter First:
Do you want to receive the newsletter as soon as it’s published on the website? Sign up below by clicking the image or filling out the form below!
