Palm Coast, Flagler County Florida has a huge inventory of houses and land for sale for dirt cheap. Homes start at $134k and land starts at $19K.

If you are looking to buy, NOW is the time. Prices have not been this low for 13 years. Interest rates are low too.

One of the reasons property prices are low in Florida is that there are tens of thousand of new unsold holiday homes in the greater Miami/Fort Lauderdale/Palm Beach area alone.

If you want a place to buy to live it may be a good time now while prices are low, but as an investment they will take a long time to recover and have a lot of competition to rent.

Remember also that Florida property tax is 4% per annum.

Are'nt there quite restrictive rental rules?
Insurance I hear is very expensive / restricitive.
Stories of ongoing costs swallowing up the rent are common.

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Been investing abroad a few years. Always amazed people invest in places that produce just a few months rent per year

The only thing I know of that is restrictive about Florida rental rules is that there is a tax, like a hotel tax, on short term lets. If the rental period is more than 6 months, there is no rental tax.

Some of the insurance companies have decided to stop issuing policies in Florida. It's possible to get an insurance binder on a property before you own it, that says the insurance company will issue a policy on the property.

It's easy enough to talk to a couple of insurance companies before buying. 4-5 minutes spent on a phone call is pretty cheap. Then you make your purchase offer contingient upon being able to purchase insurance. Then, if you can't fond insurance, the sale is cancelled.

Florida isn't my favorite place. I don't like the humidity, the bugs, or the crowds. But if you like the place, it is a good time to buy. There are foreclosures that can be purchased as short sales (for less than the mortgage owed on them), and sellers have dropped their prices and some of them are accepting very low offers.

Yes, it might take awhile for the market to recover. But real estate is a long term investment, and the goal is to buy low and sell high. If you only purchase in really hot markets, you aren't going to get the low pirchase price. Also, real estate runs in cycles, so if you purchase when the price is high, there is nowhere to go but down.

Speaking as someone that lives in Palm Beach Florida I can tell you that insurance is VERY expensive. The closer you are to the beach the more you pay. It might be a good bit cheaper that far north but I wouldn't dismiss insurance costs till you have seen some quotes.

Prices have indeed dropped a lot in the last 24 months but the fact a house has gone from 550k to 390k doesn't mean it cannot go to 300k. Don't try to pick the bottom, it is like catching a falling knife. Another consideration is that many people are considering (I spoke to a local realtor yesterday) leaving Florida once they get foreclosed upon as it is so expensive to live in FL.

With all of that said I like it here (I am from the UK) and once you get used to the bugs and humidity it is a lovely place.

Good luck with your search!

Paul

My relatives live in Florida and one of them is the asset manager to a big bank in Sarasota. I was talking with him about this very same thing a few months back when I visited. He did say that insurance is expensive but Florida along with Mississippi are going to see some deep discounts on insurance policies, largely due to the housing market collapse and its efforts to bring people back to buying. What I gathered from speaking with him is that it will always be Florida. He mentioned Cape Coral, FL which I looked into has one of the worse markets! I came to the conclusion, mostly on his justification that Cape Coral will be one of the first markets to rebound because you can buy foreclosures for $120k US dollars, rent for $1,000 per month, etc....He was saying to give it a solid 3-5 years, but at that time he expects those houses to be back in the upper $100's to lower $200's.

I bought a home with my auntie and we paid $118k, rented for $950 on an annual lease. The guy I purchased it thru is a very nice guy and understood the market incredibly well. He handles a lot of the foreclosures for Bank of America in that area. I trust his judgment because my relative spoke highly of him.

One thing he did say was to focus on Southwest Florida though if I wasn't clear on that. If anyone wants to speak with him, I am sure he will not mind if I gave his number. It is a U.S. number though.

Could you please send me the contact details on the agent you are talking about.... faysal 'dot' bhatty 'at' gmail 'dot' com

Thanks

Hello AYDENJOSEPH,
Glad to see you bought a property with your auntie.
Could you tell me what price you are paying for building insurance, and what are the local (council) tax. Also are there any community/maintenance payments to make.
Thanks

I am pretty sure the taxes would have been the breaker for me.

Still no word. Hope you are OK?