Monthly Archives: December 2011

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It seems that Florida is looking up vis-à-vis jobs and housing in particular and its economy in general.  The Florida Legislature now has the capacity to develop close to 9,000 jobs, rendering a staggering $900m for the 2012-13 fiscal year.  It will be able to do this by getting money from the state and local housing trust fund which often ends up in the category “general revenue” and pretty much gets lost.

Great Florida Housing à Great Florida Economy

The bottom line is that the more recovery there is on the Florida housing market, the better the entire state’s economy will fare.  If capital is taken from the housing trust fund, it can be used to renovate abandoned homes, which would give those working in the field of construction, jobs, and thus boost the economy. So it just makes sense to invest in the state’s real estate market.  Doing so will result in property value stabilization for everyone while supporting firms that deal in all sorts of construction areas (material provision; contractors; supervisors; workers and more. 

Ultimately, Florida needs its sales taxes to generate revenue and when funds set aside for housing are not used for this purpose, there is an increase in sales revenue, which results in a reduction of the state budget deficit.

 

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It seems like renting out government-owned homes in Florida would be a good idea right now.  But, at the same time, doing so probably will not ultimately solve the problem in the areas where housing prices have taken the biggest hit.

The idea now though – in places like Florida – is that the FHFA (Federal Housing Finance Agency) is currently looking into the possibility of selling these homes to investors who would then rent or sell them, which would generate a profit for them.  The hope thereafter is, that government-agencies will also make money (which they really need) and the value of neighborhood properties will increase by putting renters or buyers into the homes that are sitting empty.  At the same time, this would facilitate tight rental markets through an expansion of the amount of homes available.

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And now, no matter where you are, you can see what is going on in your home.  Go out for lunch, go to work, but still be able to keep track of the happenings in your home. This is already the case in Naples, Florida, where monitors are being put in into homes. One homeowner said she likes the new technology just to be able to keep an eye on things at home when she’s not there.

E-Monitor

The new technology – called E-Monitor – employs the same idea as a car dashboard. People using it can track their doors being locked, energy efficiency and even let them turn lights on and off.  As a result, it is able to reduce energy bills by around a quarter.  While it is currently available for use in Florida, experts believe it will be nationwide and a $15bn industry within the next three years. Presently, the system costs $1,500 to install. But it’s great if someone immediately finds out that their appliance is not working properly. Co-owner of Your Home Watch Professionals, Bob Weiss, said, “we’re always afraid that when we leave and turn the key something is going to break so we're able to monitor that by knowing that 7-10 days out we won't have to worry as much because if it breaks in three days we get an email alert.”