Let’s Make a Deal: Property Trading Gains Traction in South Florida Housing Market

Who needs to take out a Florida home mortgage loan in order to purchase a house? Not as many as you’d think in Southwest Florida, now that the slowing real estate market has revived one of the oldest forms of doing business:

Trade.

Conditions arouns various cities are forcing people to find creative ways to sell their homes. While this used to include offering incentives, such as paying closing costs for buyers or providing them with a big-screen TV, bartering is now taking over as a selling tool.

For example, Paul Forsberg owned a waterfront home in Punta Gorda that sat on a salt water canal. He thought it would be an easy sell. But with $500,000 price tag, he had almost no takers.

A friend suggested he try something that school kids do with baseball cards and comic books: Offer that residence in a fair trade. Make it possible for others to move in without having to worry about coming up with the money for a down payment or improving their credit score to receive approval on a Florida home mortgage.

“The market is slow. It’s a buyer’s market now. Cash is tough to come by. It’s one way of being creative,” said Forsberg.

The unusual approach worked. In the trade, Forsberg received five units in a brand new office condo, while the developer of the Old Town Business Center now has the keys to Forsberg’s home.

Surprisingly, Florida real estate agents say that property swaps are becoming more popular as sales numbers decline.

“I think it depends on how bad a seller wants to sell and a buyer wants to buy. It’s really a good way to do the deal,” said real estate agent Nancy Okun.

As the market continues to slow down, more homeowners may find that property exchanges are right for them. Forsberg traded his Punta Gorda home after he listed it with a real estate trading company in Bonita Springs.

One reason why trades are becoming more popular is because homeowners don’t have to pay taxes on any property they trade unless it’s sold at a later date. Although the market is expected to recover soon, allowing for more typical purchases involving Florida home loans, buyers and sellers, trading is something to at least consider at the moment.