Florida RealEstateRama

ORLANDO, FL - July 8, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Teachers. Firefighters. Military personnel. Nurses. Police officers. The list goes on and on: Many people who provide vital services that strengthen our communities can’t afford to own a home or live where they work

EUGENE, OR - July 2, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Melissa Sites, of Realty World Marketplace, and IDX, Inc. have launched a joint venture to her real estate website. The addition of IDX Broker software has made for a simple and easy-to-use online property search by syncing the Western North Carolina Regional MLS (WNCRMLS), which Sites is a member of, with the listings she represents, to give home seekers in Asheville, North Carolina a comprehensive and complete online database of local home listings. Now more than ever before, finding a home in Asheville is easier, on Melissa Sites real estate website.

TALLAHASSEE, FL - July 2, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Attorney General Bill McCollum and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) Commissioner Gerald Bailey today announce the arrest of 10 members of a criminal mortgage fraud and identity theft operation. The group is charged with defrauding numerous financial institutions out of more than $8 million, and using the identities of unsuspecting individuals as part of the conspiracy to obtain the mortgages and properties. The arrests are the result of a four-year investigation conducted by FDLE’s Miami Regional Operations Center and the Attorney General's Office of Statewide Prosecution. The individuals arrested face charges including racketeering, conspiracy to commit racketeering, grand theft, and title insurance fraud

TAVARES, FL - July 1, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- When Gov. Charlie Crist signed into law Senate Bill 1752 “Jobs for Florida” last month, not only did it provide tax incentives and tax breaks for qualified businesses, but it allowed developers and property owners to extend Lake County development orders that have an expiration date between Sept. 1, 2008, and Jan. 1, 2012, for two years. The extension applies to building permits, preliminary plat approvals, construction plan approvals and site plans.

TAVARES, FL - July 1, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- A new trailer equipped with a 280-gallon tank is allowing the Lake County Department of Environmental Utilities, Water Quality Services Division, to pump out old home-heating oil tanks more cost effectively.

EUGENE, OR - June 29, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Jonathan Marshman of Remax Harbor Realty has joined forces with IDX, Inc. to update and expand the online property search options available on his website. Now, Mid Florida Regional MLS (MFRMLS) listings are displayed directly on his website to better serve his clients with thousands of local property listings. Marshman, MFRMLS and IDX, Inc. are working together to make a dynamic and powerful online property search for every one of his clients.

ORLANDO, FL - June 28, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- “To us, home is where we prop our feet up after a rough day” says 2010 Florida Realtors® President Wendell Davis, a broker with Watson Realty Corp. in Jacksonville. “If ‘home’ to our service sons and daughters is a short phone call, then we, as Florida Realtors, should help them find ‘home,’ just as we help Florida buyers find a home.”

Washington, DC - June 25, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) --Congressmen Jeff Miller (R-FL) and Adam Putnam (R-FL) today introduced legislation to provide mortgage forbearance to homeowners in the areas affected by the BP Deepwater Horizon oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico.

Washington, DC - June 24, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Congresswoman Kathy Castor announced today that $418 million is now available to help Floridians with bridge loans for mortgages through the Obama Administration’s “Hardest Hit Fund,” which will be directed to the state Housing Finance Agency and will immediately assist homeowners

EUGENE, OR - June 23, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The constantly expanding team of real estate professionals partnering with IDX, Inc. has increased yet again with the addition of Florida Realtor Scott Berry of Sand Castle Realty Group, Inc. As a member of the Naples MLS and Fort Meyers MLS, Berry has the ability to scan thousands of property listings daily. Now, potential clients have the unique ability to search through these listings on their own, in an effort to save both real estate professionals, like Berry, and potential home buyers time. Finding a home in Naples, Florida is now easier than ever thanks to his IDX Broker synced website

ORLANDO, FL - June 23, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Sales of existing homes in Florida rose 18 percent in May, marking 21 months that sales activity has increased in the year-to-year comparison, according to the latest housing data released by Florida Realtors

Tampa, FL - June 23, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) today announced the availability of new guidelines to protect property from the effects of hurricanes. These guidelines have been updated based on information obtained from IBHS field research in the aftermath of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike in 2008.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - June 21, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Some relief is coming for those with Chinese drywall in their homes, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson says. The defective drywall has been linked to possible health problems and causes corrosion of electrical wiring, appliances and air conditioning units.

EUGENE, OR - June 16, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mark Weber of White Sands Realty in Naples, Florida has chosen to update his real estate website with a customized IDX solution. IDX Broker provides software that cuts down on search time for agents, brokers and potential buyers alike. The innovative technology of IDX Broker software allows the Sunshine MLS (SSMLS) listings to be seamlessly integrated with listings of Mark Weber, giving his clients the most comprehensive database of property listings available.

EUGENE, OR - June 16, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mark Weber of White Sands Realty in Naples, Florida has chosen to update his real estate website with a customized IDX solution. IDX Broker provides software that cuts down on search time for agents, brokers and potential buyers alike. The innovative technology of IDX Broker software allows the Sunshine MLS (SSMLS) listings to be seamlessly integrated with listings of Mark Weber, giving his clients the most comprehensive database of property listings available.

EUGENE, OR - June 16, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mark Weber of White Sands Realty in Naples, Florida has chosen to update his real estate website with a customized IDX solution. IDX Broker provides software that cuts down on search time for agents, brokers and potential buyers alike. The innovative technology of IDX Broker software allows the Sunshine MLS (SSMLS) listings to be seamlessly integrated with listings of Mark Weber, giving his clients the most comprehensive database of property listings available.

EUGENE, OR - June 16, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Mark Weber of White Sands Realty in Naples, Florida has chosen to update his real estate website with a customized IDX solution. IDX Broker provides software that cuts down on search time for agents, brokers and potential buyers alike. The innovative technology of IDX Broker software allows the Sunshine MLS (SSMLS) listings to be seamlessly integrated with listings of Mark Weber, giving his clients the most comprehensive database of property listings available.

Tampa, FL - June 15, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- June is National Homeownership Month and the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) offers advice on how to keep the American dream of homeownership from becoming a nightmare

EUGENE, OR - June 14, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- IDX, Inc. is pleased to announce the new addition of Miami Realtor Rafael Rodriquez and the Foster & Clark Real Estate team to the growing number of professionals updating their websites with the revolutionary IDX Broker software. The easy-to-use Internet Data Exchange (IDX) technology integrates Greater Miami and the Beach MLS (GMBMLS) raw listing data with the listings Rodriguez represents, giving Miami residents and home seekers a comprehensive search package. Rodriguez can now sit back and relax as the IDX Broker software changes the way he manages his online real estate business.

EUGENE, OR - June 8, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- With a growing number of real estate professionals choosing to update and simplify their real estate website, IDX, Inc. is pleased to announce the newest addition of Abby Oglesbee of Coldwell Banker Schmitt Real Estate. Florida Keys MLS (FLKMLS) listings are now integrated with Oglesbee's own listings on her real estate website, to deliver her clients with the most comprehensive property search available online. The innovative Internet Data Exchange (IDX) technology provided by IDX Broker and now available on Oglesbee's website makes searching for a home simpler than ever.

Washington, DC - June 3, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Representative John L. Mica (FL-7th District) announced federal grants for the Housing Authority of Daytona Beach and the Housing Authority of Ormond Beach to aid in securing housing for homeless veterans.

EUGENE, OR - June 2, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- IDX, Inc. is pleased to announce the addition of Bicoastal Realty and Theo Glorie to the growing network of agents and brokers updating their real estate websites with the innovative IDX Broker software. This tool allows agents like Glorie to display Florida Keys MLS (FLKMLS) listings directly on his website, with simplicity never before found during the online home search process. Internet Data Exchange (IDX) technology extracts FLKMLS raw listing data and integrates it with Bicoastal Realty listings to give Glorie's clients the most comprehensive home search available on the web

TALLAHASSEE, FL - May 25, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Florida CFO Alex Sink today asked Governor Crist to sign into law the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program, which would give local governments the option of providing loans for property owners to make energy-efficiency enhancements to their homes and engage in renewable energy projects.

Tampa, FL - May 24, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- The Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) today announced the release of its new Open for Business® Online Trainer and Advanced Track sessions, a Web-based continuity planning tool for small businesses available exclusively to IBHS members.

ORLANDO, FL - May 24, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Sales of existing homes in Florida rose 27 percent in April, which means that sales activity has increased in the year-to-year comparison for 20 months, according to the latest housing data released by Florida Realtors®. Another positive sign: Last month’s statewide existing-home median price of $140,100 was 1 percent higher than the statewide median price in April 2009.Existing home sales rose 27 percent last month with a total of 16,781 homes sold statewide compared to 13,244 homes sold in April 2009, according to Florida Realtors. Statewide existing home sales last month increased nearly 3 percent over statewide sales activity in March. Meanwhile, April’s statewide existing-home median price was 2.3 percent higher than March’s statewide existing-home median price of $137,000. It marks the second month in a row that the statewide existing-home median price has increased over the previous month’s median.

ORLANDO, FL - May 19, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Florida Realtors’® member website, www.floridarealtors.org , took top honors nationally in the prestigious “2010 Outstanding Realtor Association Web Site Contest,” sponsored by the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) and Realtor® Association Executive Magazine.

Tampa, FL - May 19, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- With weather forecasters calling for a worse-than-average 2010 Atlantic basin hurricane season, the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) offers effective ways to protect your home or business from the damaging effects of a hurricane. IBHS also dispels some common myths about hurricane preparedness

EUGENE, OR - May 17, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- IDX, Inc. is pleased to announce the addition of Florida Realtor Randy Robinson and Highlight Realty to the growing number of agents and brokers choosing to create customized real estate websites with the IDX Broker software. The tools used to integrate Palm Beach Regional MLS (RMLSFL) listings and Robinson's website revolutionize the online home search for potential buyers by giving them more options and freedom throughout the process. The custom IDX solution on Robinson's website extracts raw listing data from the RMLSFL and displays it on his website providing home seekers the most comprehensive list of properties available

PALM HARBOR, FL - May 13, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- U.S. Rep. Gus M. Bilirakis (R-Fla.), representing Florida’s 9th Congressional District including portions of Pasco, Pinellas and Hillsborough counties, will be hosting a home foreclosure assistance workshop on Saturday, May 22, 2010.

ORLANDO, FL - May 12, 2010 - (RealEstateRama) -- Sales of existing single-family homes in Florida rose 24 percent in first quarter 2010 compared to the same period a year earlier, according to the latest housing statistics from Florida Realtors®. A total of 38,846 existing homes sold statewide in 1Q 2010; during the same period the year before, a total of 31,410 existing homes sold. It marks the seventh consecutive quarter that Florida has seen higher existing year-to-year home sales, according to the state association.Statewide sales of existing condominiums in the first quarter rose 67 percent compared to the same time the previous year. This marks the sixth consecutive quarter for increased statewide sales in both the existing home and condo markets compared to year-ago levels.