Latest news with #Homes.com
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
You Can Buy a $20 Million Mansion Inside Disney World — But It Could Cost You $180,000 A Year Just to Keep It
Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. Living at Disney might sound like a dream, but it comes with a reality check. At Golden Oak, Disney's ultra-luxury residential community in Florida, $20 million just buys you the keys. Keeping them? That's another story. The homes are custom-built, full-time residences located on Walt Disney World property. They're tucked behind gates near the Magic Kingdom, designed to resemble Mediterranean villas or modern castles, and come with resort-style perks like concierge service, fireworks views, and access to private lounges and pools. But the ongoing costs of living in Golden Oak can be so high, they rival the price of a second home. Don't Miss: Hasbro, MGM, and Skechers trust this AI marketing firm — Invest Where It Hurts — And Help Millions Heal: Here's what you could expect to pay annually—on top of the multimillion-dollar price tag: Homeowners association fees: $816 to $2,830 per month. That's $9,792 to $33,960 per year. Mandatory Golden Oak Club membership: $19,000 per year Four Seasons add-on fees for select homes: $4,200 to $10,000 per year. Property taxes: Frequently over $100,000. One listing on showed $103,665 in annual taxes. Total it all up, and some homeowners are shelling out $180,000 a year or more just to live there—not including utilities, insurance, or maintenance. Some property listings describe Golden Oak homes as "fee simple," meaning buyers own both the home and the land. But some Reddit discussions claim that certain sections operate under 99-year land leases. Trending: If there was a new fund backed by Jeff Bezos offering a ? If that's true, homeowners would technically only lease the land from Disney, and once the 99 years are up, Disney could reclaim the property outright, with no compensation owed to the homeowner or their heirs. Florida case law confirms that long-term leaseholders can still qualify for homestead exemptions, which supports the idea that this setup exists in at least some parts of Golden Oak. Even if you do own the land, you're still playing by Disney's rules. Homeowners must follow strict architectural and landscaping guidelines, and virtually all modifications require Disney's approval. Even reselling the home needs a green light from the company. This level of oversight ensures everything stays polished and brand-aligned—but it's also a lot of oversight for a $20 million Oak offers the most exclusive version of the Disney lifestyle. But between the fees, the fine print, this isn't just a luxury address—it's a highly regulated, high-cost commitment. If you're going to drop $20 million on a mansion near Cinderella Castle, just make sure you're not accidentally buying a timeshare in disguise. . With over $1 million in dividends paid out last quarter and a growing selection of properties across various markets, Arrived offers an attractive alternative for investors seeking to build a diversified real estate portfolio. In October 2024, Arrived sold The Centennial, achieving a total return of 34.7% (11.2% average annual returns) for investors. Arrived aims to continue delivering similar value across our portfolio through careful market selection, attentive property management, and thoughtful timing in sales. Looking for fractional real estate investment opportunities? The features the latest offerings. Image: Shutterstock Send To MSN: 0 This article You Can Buy a $20 Million Mansion Inside Disney World — But It Could Cost You $180,000 A Year Just to Keep It originally appeared on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Newsweek
29-05-2025
- Business
- Newsweek
South Florida Condo Sales Collapse as Market Suffers 'Real Pain'
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Condo sales continued plunging across South Florida in April—a sign that would-be homebuyers remain cautious of rising homeowner association (HOA) fees and growing costs for aging buildings, while widespread uncertainty around the U.S. economy is also taking its toll. According to Juan Arias, South Florida-based director of market analytics at the region's condo market is "beginning to see the real pain" now, he told WLRN. Why It Matters The South Florida condo market saw an explosion in for-sale inventory in the months leading up to December 31, 2024, the deadline for a crucial milestone inspection of the state's aging condos required by new building safety legislation. The new law, introduced as a response to the Surfside collapse of 2021, which killed 98 people, requires condo owners and associations to have sufficient reserves to cover necessary repairs and maintenance work and conduct a survey of reserves every decade. While the law was meant to prevent another tragedy like that of the Champlain Tower South, it had the unwanted consequence of bringing up costs for condo associations and owners, many of whom tried to sell their units before facing higher fees. What they found, though, was an oversaturated market where too many people were trying to sell and not enough buyers were interested in what they were offering. As a result, condo inventory has skyrocketed in South Florida, while sales and prices have started to fall, putting struggling condo owners in an even tougher spot. What To Know The pace of condo sales in South Florida saw a double-digit dip in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach County in April compared to a year earlier, according to data from the Miami Association of Realtors, at the same time as inventory continued growing. Miami-Dade saw a drop in condo sales of 21.3 percent compared to a year earlier, the biggest among all three counties, while sales in Broward and Palm Beach County fell respectively by 19.2 percent and 14.4 percent. This downward trend is reflected in the statewide and nationwide markets, where sales of single-family homes and condos have slowed down due to historically elevated mortgage rates, stubbornly high prices and growing fears of a looming recession. "Sales activity has been sluggish both nationally and in South Florida as higher interest rates, lower employment growth and moderating migration are all impacting demand for homes and condos," Arias told Newsweek. Residential condominiums in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida. Residential condominiums in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida. Getty Images But the South Florida condo market is seeing much more dramatic price drops as a result of shrinking sales than the single-family homes market in the region, where inventory remains below pre-pandemic level and availability is limited. "While single-family home prices continued to increase, condominium prices fell in April," Arias said. "Condo prices are declining by over 17 percent as pricing continues to deteriorate after almost a year of constant monthly pricing declines." In Miami-Dade, according to the Miami Association of Realtors, prices were up 0.2 percent year-over-year last month. In Broward County, they were down 0.9 percent. In Palm Beach County, they were down by a steep 5.9 percent. Even within the South Florida condo market, there are important nuances to consider—with more expensive condos somehow faring better than most affordable ones. According to Arias, the region's condo market is reporting more sales for properties priced at $1 million and above than it is for those priced below $1 million, where sales volume has shrunk. "In fact, while affordable condo sale activity remains below pre-pandemic levels, activity for more expensive condos remains elevated," he told Newsweek. "Higher homeowner association [HOA] fees, assessments, and higher financing costs are impacting lower-priced condos, which tend to be older and have to go through their decennial certification," he added. Some older condos in South Florida are facing challenges in meeting the certification required by the new law, with less than half of the condos in the region meeting their milestone inspection deadline by the end of last year. This, in turn, is making it difficult for condo buyers to secure the necessary financing for their purchases. "Many of these condos that have yet to meet their inspection or have not had structural repairs done are being placed on a Fannie Mae blacklist, which prevents prospective buyers from getting one of the most affordable types of financing," Arias said. "This is a significant challenge, as around half of transactions for lower-priced condos rely on financing. In contrast, almost 80 percent of sales for $1 million+ condos are all cash." What People Are Saying Realtor Alexei Morgado told Mortgage Professional America: "The condo market is in the midst of a perfect storm. The combined effect of these new laws made over 1,400 condos in Florida ineligible for the standard loan. Buyers now rely on non-QM loans to buy condos in Florida, and the rates and terms are worse." MIAMI REALTORS Chief Economist Gay Cororaton said in a recent press release: "We're seeing a highly polarized market, with sales moving either in the lower price-tier markets that are affordable for most buyers or in the high-end markets where cash buyers make up about half or more of the sales." What Happens Next The challenges posed by the new building safety law to condo owners and associations are expected to be addressed by a bill passed by the Florida legislature this spring and now awaiting Governor Ron DeSantis' signature. The bill, HB 913, would revise the recently introduced condo laws by extending by one year the deadline for the required milestone inspection and consequent structural integrity study, giving more time to associations to collect reserve funding. "Condo properties need more time to meet their milestone inspections and also comply with structural repairs. Additionally, new financing options will allow many HOAs to move forward with required projects," Arias said. While he thinks the bill to be signed by DeSantis is a positive measure, Arias doubts that it would drive a significant shift in the current condo market pricing trends. "The headwinds of elevated financing costs, HOA costs, assessments and slower employment gains still remain," he said. "The law is a move in the right direction, but further extensions to meeting milestone deadlines will remain increasingly unlikely as lawmakers weigh the benefits for current condo owners vs the potential of another building collapse."
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
CoStar's Hedge Fund Investors Signal Urge 'Meaningful Self-Help' To Get Homes.com Back On Course
Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. Costar's (NASDAQ:CSGP) residential real estate listing site, embarked on a billion-dollar spending spree in 2024 to try to take the mantle from established marketplace leaders like Zillow (NASDAQ:Z) and However, earlier this year, the first signs of trouble emerged amid news of layoffs. Now, just over a year since the site began earning revenue, two of its hedge fund investors, D.E. Shaw & Co. and Third Point Investors Ltd., have signaled for change. Don't Miss: Hasbro, MGM, and Skechers trust this AI marketing firm — Inspired by Uber and Airbnb – Deloitte's fastest-growing software company is transforming 7 billion smartphones into income-generating assets – 'Despite the continued strength of its core business, we believe recent capital allocation decisions have derailed CoStar's compounding algorithm,' a recent investor letter from Third Point said. 'Over the past five years, management has increasingly focused on leveraging CoStar's dominance in commercial real estate to expand into residential real estate.' After spending over $1 billion per year with an estimated $3 billion to be spent by the end of 2025, Third Point says so far there is little to show in the way of return. 'This investment has yet to generate meaningful revenue,' the letter states. 'Expanding losses at have obscured rapid growth in the core business and reduced consolidated EBITDA by approximately 80%.' Third Star lays bare the financial realities for the listings site following an extravagant launch, saying that after two decades of compounding at an internal rate of return of roughly 25%, CoStar's stock has remained flat in the last five years. Trending: Maker of the $60,000 foldable home has 3 factory buildings, 600+ houses built, and big plans to solve housing — 'After several years of uncertainty, we believe it is time for CoStar to begin the journey of meaningful self-help,' the letter states. The self-help plan includes a board shake-up and a capital allocation committee. The committee will include Costar CEO Andy Florence. The team will be tasked with overseeing the investment and profitability timeline. In February, made headlines when it announced 100 layoffs from its headquarters in Richmond, Virginia, blaming AI for some of the cuts. 'The company expects to eliminate roles in 2025 from efficiencies gained by using AI and reallocate those resources into other areas,' CoStar said in statement. 'CoStar Group sees rapidly growing value in leveraging artificial intelligence to improve content creation, drive operational efficiencies, and build the next generation of digital real estate user interfaces.'In July, CoStar Group was forced to discontinue some of its TV ads after two Fast-Track SWIFT challenges were brought by Move Inc., and BBB National Programs' National Advertising. Move Inc. operates Move, a direct rival to is owned by News Corp (NASDAQ:NWS, NWSA)). In the BBB National Programs National Advertising complaint, Move disputed two claims that CoStar had made in its advertising: ' just reached 156M monthly unique visitors.' ' now has DOUBLE traffic.' Currently, there is a dispute about page views. The CoStar claimed to average 104 million monthly unique visitors in Q1 2025, placing it ahead of Redfin (NASDAQ:RDFN) and However, analytical software company SEMRUSH puts behind Zillow, and Redfin (NASDAQ:RDFN). Read Next: , which provides access to a pool of short-term loans backed by residential real estate with just a $100 minimum. 'Scrolling To UBI' — Deloitte's #1 fastest-growing software company allows users to earn money on their phones. Image: Shutterstock Send To MSN: 0 This article CoStar's Hedge Fund Investors Signal Urge 'Meaningful Self-Help' To Get Back On Course originally appeared on
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Florida's pandemic housing boom is over. Are we headed toward a crash?
For a time, Tampa Bay was one of the hottest housing markets in the country. But falling prices and lagging sales across the Sunshine State signal a stark reversal from the pandemic-fueled home buying boom. 'People were getting used to making huge profits on their houses in a short period of time,' said Michael Wyckoff managing broker of Engel & Völkers Madeira Beach. 'That's slowing down.' The number of homes sold in the Tampa Bay metro area remained flat year over year, but dropped about 20% since 2022, from when the market was booming. That's according to preliminary April data from a subsidiary of the real estate firm, CoStar Group. Counties that were badly hit by Hurricanes Helene and Milton faced even greater losses. Since last year, sales decreased by 8% in Hillsborough County and almost 13% in Pinellas, according to April data from Suncoast Association of Realtors. Homes are taking longer to sell. The median time a home spends on market is now between 70 and 85 days. Though that's on par with what we've seen historically, Michelle Rumore, senior director of market analytics for CoStar said it's a far cry from the Covid-19 era, when homes stayed on the market for about 40-50 days. More available homes and fewer interested buyers has caused prices across Tampa Bay to decrease for four consecutive months. The median home price now hovers around $365,000, according to That's almost a 3% decrease from this time last year and about a 5% decrease from June 2024 when prices peaked at $385,000. Prices for the country as a whole are actually rising slightly. April saw a 1.3% year over year increase, marking four months of price growth, data shows. Florida's housing market is unique because so many people moved here during Covid-19, said Rumore. But now that migration has slowed down, 'the rubber band effect is just a little more apparent here than in other markets,' she said. Even though prices are coming down slightly, that's not enough to entice buyers who are facing higher mortgage rates, insurance costs and overall economic uncertainty, said Lei Wedge, professor of Finance at the University of South Florida's Muma College of Business. Wyckoff said during the pandemic, interest rates were artificially lowered to boost the economy. He believes that buyers will eventually adjust to the new normal. 'If you were to look over the last 50 years, 7% is not a terrible mortgage rate,' he said. Though the market has cooled, that doesn't necessarily mean a crash is on the horizon. What's unfolding now is a 'slow correction,' Wedge said. That's different from the major slashes in prices that took place after the 2008 financial crisis. She believes there may be a slight oversupply of housing in the local market right now. 'You had all the builders jumping in when the market was hot,' she said. 'By the time they're done building, we don't have as many people moving to Tampa.' The good news is, this gives buyers a bit more leverage. Wyckoff said he's seeing more sellers agree to cover closing costs, inspections, repairs and other concessions. 'We're in a more balanced market now,' he said.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Florida's pandemic housing boom is over. Are we headed toward a crash?
For a time, Tampa Bay was one of the hottest housing markets in the country. But falling prices and lagging sales across the Sunshine State signal a stark reversal from the pandemic-fueled home buying boom. 'People were getting used to making huge profits on their houses in a short period of time,' said Michael Wyckoff managing broker of Engel & Völkers Madeira Beach. 'That's slowing down.' The number of homes sold in the Tampa Bay metro area remained flat year over year, but dropped about 20% since 2022, from when the market was booming. That's according to preliminary April data from a subsidiary of the real estate firm, CoStar Group. Counties that were badly hit by Hurricanes Helene and Milton faced even greater losses. Since last year, sales decreased by 8% in Hillsborough County and almost 13% in Pinellas, according to April data from Suncoast Association of Realtors. Homes are taking longer to sell. The median time a home spends on market is now between 70 and 85 days. Though that's on par with what we've seen historically, Michelle Rumore, senior director of market analytics for CoStar said it's a far cry from the Covid-19 era, when homes stayed on the market for about 40-50 days. More available homes and fewer interested buyers has caused prices across Tampa Bay to decrease for four consecutive months. The median home price now hovers around $365,000, according to That's almost a 3% decrease from this time last year and about a 5% decrease from June 2024 when prices peaked at $385,000. Prices for the country as a whole are actually rising slightly. April saw a 1.3% year over year increase, marking four months of price growth, data shows. Florida's housing market is unique because so many people moved here during Covid-19, said Rumore. But now that migration has slowed down, 'the rubber band effect is just a little more apparent here than in other markets,' she said. Even though prices are coming down slightly, that's not enough to entice buyers who are facing higher mortgage rates, insurance costs and overall economic uncertainty, said Lei Wedge, professor of Finance at the University of South Florida's Muma College of Business. Wyckoff said during the pandemic, interest rates were artificially lowered to boost the economy. He believes that buyers will eventually adjust to the new normal. 'If you were to look over the last 50 years, 7% is not a terrible mortgage rate,' he said. Though the market has cooled, that doesn't necessarily mean a crash is on the horizon. What's unfolding now is a 'slow correction,' Wedge said. That's different from the major slashes in prices that took place after the 2008 financial crisis. She believes there may be a slight oversupply of housing in the local market right now. 'You had all the builders jumping in when the market was hot,' she said. 'By the time they're done building, we don't have as many people moving to Tampa.' The good news is, this gives buyers a bit more leverage. Wyckoff said he's seeing more sellers agree to cover closing costs, inspections, repairs and other concessions. 'We're in a more balanced market now,' he said.
