Miami Is the Least Affordable City in America For the Middle-Class, Study Finds

By Tim Elfrink

They can be truly hard to find in Miami, always lost between the film crews chasing Kardashian sisters to their next luxury club, the Russian oligarchs loudly racing Brazilian expats in souped up Lotuses, and the parade of art-collecting billionaires snapping up property in Fisher Island.

But Miami does have a middle class! They just don't have an easy time of it. In fact, between housing and transportation costs, Miami is the single toughest place in all the nation to be a middle-class resident, according to a new study.

"Increased demand for rental housing combined with insufficient new production has raised rents," says Jeffrey Lubell, executive director of the Center for Housing Policy, "while households with blemished credit and existing homeowners with underwater mortgages have been unable to take advantage of lower home prices."

Lubell's study looked at the combined costs of housing and transportation for the 25 biggest metro areas in the country and found that in general, both had risen by 44 percent since 2000 without a corresponding bump in income.

That trend tends to squeeze the middle class hardest of all, the center says. And nowhere has that been more true than in Miami.

Middle-class households in Dade spend a staggering 72 percent of their income on transportation and housing costs, the study found.

That's the highest share of income in the nation, followed by Riverside, California (69 percent) and Tampa (66 percent.)

What's more, in Miami those costs have jumped by 47 percent since 2000, while incomes have risen only 21 percent.

It doesn't help that Miami not only has an expensive housing and rental market, but that it's tough for most residents to get around without a car, necessitating ever more cash for gas, car payments and repairs.

"Both housing and transportation costs need to be made more affordable," the center's President and Co-Founder Scott Bernstein writes.

The most affordable towns for average income families include D.C., Minneapolis and Boston.

Don't worry, though, Miami families. All you need to do is become famous via an Internet sex tape, star in an endless series of reality television shows, make billions of dollars and -- viola! -- Miami becomes a very easy place to live indeed.

JPMorgan, Gov't Set Terms for $4 Billion Piece of $13 Billion Deal

by Reuters  Nov 19th 2013 6:05AMUpdated Nov 19th 2013 6:14AM

dapd/AP

NEW YORK -- JPMorgan Chase and U.S. government officials have agreed on terms of a $4 billion consumer relief package that is to be part of a $13 billion deal to settle the bank's liability to government agencies over mortgage securities, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The $4 billion portion of the deal would pay for write-downs of mortgage loans, demolition in blighted areas and lower monthly payments for homeowners, the person said Monday.

Shaun Donovan, secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, was involved with the negotiations which have come under the umbrella of a broader settlement between the bank and the U.S. Department of Justice, the person said.

Of the $4 billion, about $1.5 billion is to be earmarked for write-downs of loans that exceed the property value and as much as $500 million more would go for restructuring loans to lower monthly payments. 

The remaining $2 billion would go for assorted measures, including new loans for low- and moderate-income borrowers in areas that have been hard-hit by the housing crisis and demolition of abandoned homes, the person said.
The agreement is to require JPMorgan (JPM) to spend the money by the end of 2016 under the watch of a independent monitor, the person said.

The final $13 billion deal is likely to be announced Tuesday, the person said. Another source familiar with the matter said earlier in the day that that announcement could be in the next day or two. Neither sources was authorized to speak on the record about the matter.

The total deal is also to include a $2 billion penalty and at least $4 billion for federal housing 

finance agencies under a previously announced agreement.

The fact that the $13 billion deal would include $4 billion for some form of "consumer relief" has 

been known for weeks. The details of how the $4 billion would be spent were released on 

Monday.  As per Michael Kitchen, the plan involves adding $2.5 billion to J.P. Morgan's reserves for 

paying litigation costs, with the other $1.5 billion going to the risk and compliance efforts, including a 

30% increase in related staffing, the report said. The bank is currently operating under four regulatory 

enforcement actions and faces at least seven separate investigations by the Justice Department, the 

report said. Shares of J.P. Morgan finished Thursday with a 1.9% loss but added 0.1% in after-hours 

trading.

Willy Chirino's Miami House Looks Strangely Like A Ski Lodge

Cuba-born singer Willy Chirino, whose 2006 “Son del Alma” won a Grammy for Best Salsa/Merengue Album, is selling hisMiami mansion for $5.75 million.

And although the listing describes the Bay Point home as a "residence with Tahitian design," all its stone and woodwork make it look more like a ski lodge than an island villa.

Chirino bought the 6-bed, 5.5-bath house for $795,000 in 1992, according to county records.

It features mahogany floors, polished marble, lots of stone walls, cathedral ceilings throughout, and carved wood.

Situated on Biscayne Bay, the home has an in-home recording studio, a casita by the pool, and a hot tub.

Click below for a look inside Chirino's ski lodge-esque Miami home: 

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Willy Chirino's Miami 'Ski Lodge'

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Mortgage Banker's Association (MBA): Miami's Foreclosure Inventory 34%

by Peter Ricci November 11, 2013

The health of Miami’s housing market continued to improve, according to the latest market research by the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Foreclosure inventory in the Miami fell a hefty 34 percent year-over-year in the third quarter, according to the latest National Delinquency Survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA).

In addition, the foreclosure start rate for the area plummeted 53 percent, as the housing market continued to inch back to its pre-housing bubble levels. In a media-only conference call, Jay Brinkmann, the MBA’s chief economist and senior vice president of research and education, specifically highlighted the “tremendous improvement” in Miami’s housing market in the last year.

National Delinquency Survey – All Good Signs

Brinkmann also said the MBA saw “major drops across the board” on a national scale with its third quarter National Delinquency Survey:

• Delinquencies were down for every loan type in the third quarter, and at 6.41 percent, the overall past due rate for all loans was at its lowers mark since the second quarter of 2008.
• FHA loans, in a very positive development, saw a drop in their delinquency rate by almost a full percentage point, falling to their lowest mark since 2001; VA loans, meanwhile, hit their lowest mark since 1980.
• Finally, older loans continue to make up the lion’s share of delinquencies; in the third quarter, loans from 2007 or earlier made up 77 percent of all delinquencies, while loans made in 2010, 2011 and 2012 or later made up just 4, 2 and 1 percent, respectively.

Trulia: Miami Asking Prices Jump 12.4% in November

by Peter Ricci November 8, 2013

Asking prices seem to be slowing down nationwide, but is that the case here in Miami?

October was a very positive month for Miami’s asking prices, with the metro area posting strong yearly returns in Trulia’s latest Price Monitor.

According to Trulia’s analysis, asking prices in Miami rose 12.4 percent year-over-year in October, though prices were only up 0.1 percent from the second quarter; Also, rents in the city remain among the most competitive in the nation, rising 7.6 percent from last year; at $2,200 a month, the median rent on a two-bedroom apartment in Miami is now the fifth highest in the nation.

Evan Goldman, a Realtor with RE/MAX Advance Realty in Pinecrest, said that with inventory remaining low in his markets, he sees prices remaining competitive, unless there’s a dramatic change in the marketplace.

“I still see so little inventory and so many buyers that I think it’s going to take a really big jump for it to drastically change the market in the short term,” he said. “Now eventually, over the next couple of years, you should see somewhat of a slowdown; I think the question is how much of a slowdown.”

Trulia Price Monitor – Asking Prices Slowing Down?

Nationwide, asking prices were up a bit less impressive, though the gains were all still quite positive. Prices were up 11.7 percent year-over-year and 3.1 percent quarter-over-quarter.

Jed Kolko, Trulia’s chief economist, said that though prices were up just 0.6 percent from September, there are still pronounced market reactions to the quarterly and yearly price increases.

“Although October’s asking home prices rose at the second-slowest pace in seven months, prices are still rising unsustainably fast,” said Jed Kolko, Trulia’s Chief Economist. “Even though the market is far from bubble territory, we still see the effects of fast-rising prices, including investors flipping homes and would-be sellers waiting longer to put their homes on the market.”

Miami has gained a 12.4% increase in asking prices over the year. Blame it on the low inventory? Should the repercussions be higher rents? Report unfair practices and seek a realtor or legal guidance when searching for properties. - LLD

SoFla banks with Latin ties ramp up lending

November 05, 2013 04:00PM

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From left: Mercantil’s Steven Mayer and Jaime Gilinski Bacal of JGB Bank

By Mark Maurer

Some of the largest Latin banks in South Florida increased lending during the third quarter. Ten of top 25 upped their loans by $5 million or more over that period, the South Florida Business Journal reported.

Miami-based City National Bank of Florida, owned by Bankia in Spain; and Miami-based Sabadell United Bank, owned by Banco de Sabadell in Spain, grew their loans by a significant amount — $64 million and $96 million. These banks are either arms of Latin American or Iberian Peninsula operations or run by Hispanic shareholders.

Coral Gables-based Mercantil Commercebank, a $6.9 billion subsidiary of Mercantil Servicios Financieros in Venezuela, saw its asset quality strengthen, but its loan portfolio was much stronger in Houston than in South Florida.

Some banks, however, dialed back their loans. The Colombian banker Jaime Gilinski Bacal-owned JGB Bank in Doral decreased its loan portfolio by $22 million, the report said. [South Florida Business Journal] 

Enrique Iglesias Moves Into $26 Million Mansion In Ritzy Miami Neighborhood

Enrique Iglesias visits "The Elvis Duran Z100 Morning Show" at Z100 Studio on July 18, 2013 in New York City. (GETTY IMAGES)

Spanish pop star Enrique Iglesias made a $26 million splurge on a beautiful mansion in the ritzy Miami neighborhood known as Millionaire's Row, according to gossip site TMZ.

He is not moving so far – just two doors down from his old place at Bay Point – which he sold for $6.7 million. He bought the old place as a vacant lot in 1998 for $640,000, according to the celeb site GossipExtra.

The popular singer, 38, had the house built a year after buying the land, the South Florida Web site said.

"This is a home defined by privacy and exclusivity, conveniently situated near South Beach and downtown Miami," said Esther Percal, the real estate agent in charge of the sale.

GossipExtra said it doesn't know who is buying the Iglesias place, nor will it know until the transaction is registered with Miami-Dade County.

Millionaire's Row is home to some of the very famous, including Latino pop star Ricky Martin, superstar Cher, actor Matt Damon and Iglesias' own father, Julio.

According to TMZ, the new house is about 20,000 square-feet and it has a lap pool, a dock, and a tennis court — maybe for longtime girlfriend Anna Kournikova.