Metro Orlando HBA Says Log On and Buy Now!

Buying conditions in East Orlando may never be this strong again

By: Erika Spence

The Home Builders Association of Metro Orlando (HBA) wants you to know that if you’re considering buying a new home in East Orlando, the time to act is right now. Favorable conditions exist in the areas of interest rates, inventory and incentives.

In addition, many communities in Central Florida, especially in East Orlando and Southeast Orange County are in close-out status, making current market conditions tantamount to a “last call” in sought-after areas.

For these and several other reasons, the HBA and its members are investing in an unprecedented public awareness campaign valued at more than $1 million between now and the end of March. I recently sat down with Carmen Dominguez, HBA President and owner of Homes by Carmen Dominguez to get to the bottom of housing market conditions in Central Florida, specifically as relates to new production and custom homes, and to learn more about the “Real Opportunity Central Florida” campaign.

Q: Why is the HBA embarking on this unprecedented campaign?

CD: There is a lot of noise in the marketplace that can easily mislead homebuyers. The “Real Opportunity Central Florida” campaign is a way for the Home Builders Association to communicate with all homebuyers, at any stage in their lives, whether they are first-time, move-up, down size, second home or dream home buyers, to help them understand that current conditions are in their favor and may never be quite this strong again. Local, regional and national sources all point to the remarkable convergence of events that have created a unique buyers’ market right here in Central Florida.

Q: What contributed to the current market conditions and how long will they last?

CD: Builders had a significant number of inventory homes at the end of the 2006 calendar year. There were a variety of incentives for buyers to consider and there were record low interest rates. As a result, inventories are dwindling, home builders are scaling back their promotions and financial institutions are indicating that interest rates will begin creeping back up very soon.

Q: How can Central Floridians learn more about the opportunities available to them?

CD: We’ve created a web site, www.realopportunitycfl.com containing hard, objective information from local, regional and national news sources, all of which indicate that the next few months will present an outstanding home buying opportunity, one that may never again come along in Central Florida. We’ve also added a mortgage calculator and other tools designed to give homebuyers the confidence to take advantage of a great – but temporary – home buying environment.

Carmen Dominguez went on to strongly encourage anyone considering buying a home at any price point to visit www.realopportunitycfl.com and get answers to whatever questions they might have. The campaign, funded by builders and the Metro Orlando Home Builders Association, will run through the end of March, 2007.