New York firm plans $500M, 1,400-unit resort near SeaWorld
Posted by BuyingFlorida on 08-13-2009
Views: 1399
A New York firm has given the ‘go’ signal to develop nearly 20 acres near SeaWorld Orlando into a $500 million, 1,400-unit timeshare resort called Zena. Flushing, N.Y.-based developer Show-Lain Cheng, who last year got Orange County’s zoning and conceptual plan approval, on Aug. 4 authorized the development team to start on stormwater and architectural designs for the proposed Zena. Those plans could be done by mid-September and then submitted to the county for preliminary development approval, said Jim Hall, director of planning for planning consultant and civil engineer firm Vanasse Hangen Brustlin Inc. in Orlando. The project site includes two vacant parcels near I-Drive and Westwood Boulevard totaling about 19.2 acres, which Cheng’s 12020 International Drive FL LLC bought for $13.4 million in 2006, said Orange County records. www.buyingflorida.com (Read More) |
Orlando July foreclosures up 37%
Posted by BuyingFlorida on 08-13-2009
Views: 1362
The number of Orlando area houses in some state of foreclosure in July rose 37 percent compared to the same month in 2008, as fallout from the weak economy and depressed housing prices continued to spread. RealtyTrac , an online real estate listing business, reported 7,248 foreclosures in Orange, Seminole, Osceola and Lake counties last month, up from 5,286 a year earlier. The area had 6,667 foreclosures in June. Florida’s foreclosure volume was second only to California in July as 56,486 Florida dwellings went into foreclosure during the month, rising from 45,884 in July 2008, a 23 percent increase. Orange County had the greatest number of foreclosure activity in July with 4,150, 41.9 percent more than a year earlier. Seminole followed with 1,133, a 67 percent increase. Lake recorded 1,010 incidents of foreclosure activity, double the number last year. Osceola trailed with 955, 19 percent fewer than in July 2008. Nationwide, the flood of foreclosure filings continued as 360,149 default notices, … (Read More) |
The Prisoners of Drywall
Posted by Joshernaut on 08-13-2009
Views: 1499
By M.P. MCQUEEN Shortly after buying their home in Cape Coral, Fla., in 2006, Keith and Denise Cramer noticed a peculiar acidic smell they thought was wet paint. The odor never left. There were other strange occurrences. Chrome-plated faucets and showerheads became pitted or turned black. The central air-conditioning unit faltered and failed. Their baby son, Gavin, suffered frequent ear and upper respiratory infections, and Gavin and Denise got rashes. The Cramers—along with thousands of other homeowners in Florida and elsewhere—now believe that imported Chinese drywall is making them sick and destroying their property. The drywall, which is used in walls and ceilings, is emitting sulfur-compound gases that homeowners have described as giving off a sour or “rotten egg” odor. Many blame the fumes for eye, skin and breathing irritation and nosebleeds, as well as the corrosion of copper pipes, electrical wiring and air conditioners. The Cramers say if government tests conclude the … (Read More) |
Florida bars Taylor Bean from lending
Posted by BuyingFlorida on 08-10-2009
Views: 1368
Taylor, Bean and Whitaker Mortgage Corp. – one of the largest non-bank residential lenders in Florida – has been barred from issuing mortgages in the state by the Florida Office of Financial Regulation . The state agency released an emergency cease and desist order Aug. 7 against Ocala-based Taylor Bean, which has 30 offices in Florida. State residents in the middle of the application process should be placed with viable alternate lenders. “Our main goals in this order are to limit Taylor, Bean and Whitaker’s operation in Florida and to protect any Florida consumers who may have a mortgage application in the pipeline with them,” Acting office Commissioner Linda Charity stated in a press release. According to the order, Taylor Bean’s lines of credit have been suspended and it is not able to fund loans, including 60 that have closed. This week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. banned Taylor Bean from selling and … (Read More) |
Azzouz avoids foreclosure on Veranda Park
Posted by BuyingFlorida on 08-06-2009
Views: 1449
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Karen Jenneman has given developer Kevin Azzouz nearly two months to finalize a plan to save a portion of his Veranda Park mixed-use development. Jenneman dismissed a motion Aug. 5 by Fifth Third Bank that would have ended the Chapter 11 bankruptcy case and allowed the mortgage holder to foreclose on the partially built Offices at Veranda Park 1500 building in the MetroWest development. Azzouz’s VP Phase IV and other related companies owe $15.3 million to Fifth Third Bank, which on May 7 filed a motion asking the judge to either allow the foreclosure to continue or dismiss the bankruptcy case. Fifth Third claimed VP Phase IV filed the petition in an effort to stop the foreclosure and that the single-asset entity had no reasonable prospects to reorganize under Chapter 11, the filing said. VP Phase IV filed its reorganization plan Aug. 4, which included seven classes of creditors, and now has until Aug. 14 to file its disclosure statement, which will specify how it plans to repay … (Read More) |
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