North Florida Realtors, Builders Campaign to Change Perception of Housing Market

A concerned local builders group is trying to fight what it says is a negative spin on the North Florida housing market, the Times-Union reports.

In the wake of fewer sales and increasing inventory, local home builders and Realtors are arming themselves with a weapon they hope will help turn the tide in the local market:

Information.

A seminar on Tuesday held by the Northeast Florida Builders Association gave an outlook for Jacksonville’s home market and reasons for optimism among builders and Realtors, who face a market much slower than that of 2005. Most speakers hit the audience with a similar message:

“Now is a great time to buy.”

The seminar was just the latest effort put on by the association, which has already spearheaded a campaign to communicate home statistics directly to potential buyers. About six weeks ago, the association met to discuss what it felt was a negative spin by the media on the real estate market.

They developed a Web site - JaxHomeFacts.com - and a series of TV and print ads to allay buyers’ concerns about the local market and tout it as one of the best buys in the state. With the program in its early stages, program directors don’t yet have a firm handle on how it has affected the market.

Speakers at the seminar tried to pinpoint why the number of sales have declined and what can be done to turn the market around, especially as Florida home mortgage costs remain low and the local economy is growing at a consistent clip.

Building consultant Charlie Clark cited unrealistic expectations among sellers as one of the reasons the number of sales has slowed.

“Just because they think their home is worth something, it doesn’t mean somebody else does,” he said.

He said investors helped absorb inventory during the local boom and now they are walking away from contracts or putting those homes back on the market at prices lower than what it costs builders to build homes. That means more homes than there are buyers, so no matter how good the Florida mortgage rates are, there is going to be a huge lag in sales.

Nationally, market analysts have said speculators fueled the rapid home price appreciation seen in some parts of the country. Now sales have dropped as buyers balk at the high costs of homes and sellers hold out for the same rate of appreciation the market saw in 2001-2005.

Both Clark and Wachovia Corp. senior economist Mark Vitner cited low rates as a reason for people to buy homes. Although JaxHomeFacts’s media campaign might reach buyers directly, evidence of the strength in the Jacksonville housing market seems to not be reaching home builders’ sales people, said Clockwork Marketing president Maxine McBride.

When asked by shoppers if it was a good time to buy, associates cited strong incentives given by builders rather than strong aspects of the market, emphasizing the need for builders to get the message across on the ground level.

“It’s no longer business as usual,” she said. “People want a magic bullet, but there is none.”