BUYER INCENTIVES – To spark buyers’ interest, sellers should consider practical incentives that focus on home price and monthly mortgage payments, instead of offering material perks such as fancy televisions.

This is good advise for sellers to consider when listing their Naples FL real estate property. I have said for months that sellers need to aggressively price their homes.

HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE – Florida officials are considering borrowing as much as $5 billion to make sure the state’s Hurricane Catastrophe Fund will have enough to pay claims in the event of a large hurricane.

In my humble opinion, with the state facing revenue short-falls – where is the money to fund $5 billion dollars for the Catastrophe Fund going to come from?

FIRST TIME HOME BUYERS – To scrape together money for a downpayment and qualify for a loan, a rising number of first-time homebuyers are resorting to extremes, such as raiding retirement accounts, taking second jobs or moving back in with Mom and Dad.

It seems that this is a flash back to previous times. However, second jobs will not help a borrower qualify for a loan from the income to housing or debt ratios because for a loan the employment must be for two years and show that it will continue. Are these first time home buyers setting themselves up?

SUBPRIME MORTGAGES – Continued jitters about the subprime mortgage market boosted U.S. Treasury bond prices on Monday, as worried investors again turned to the safe haven of government bonds.

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REAL ESTATE TAX REFORM – The real estate tax reform amendment goes before voters in January. The amendment does two things to jumpstart the state’s sluggish home sales market: It provides substantial tax breaks for most first-time homebuyers, and it begins to address the “locked-in” effect felt by long-term homeowners who cannot afford to move – even to downsize – because they would be forced to pay substantially higher property taxes. But it also protects long-time homeowners by giving them the option to keep their Save Our Homes protection.

State accountants updated property tax numbers Thursday and the proposed savings under the recently-passed property tax reform legislation changed for some counties and cities. In the Naples real estate market property owners will realize a 9 percent savings. Lee County will see a 7 percent savings. Specifically, the Bonita Springs real estate market will realize a 3 percent savings.

FLORIDA ECONOMY – The economic slowdown in Florida may last a little longer and the slump may be a little worse than earlier projections, state government economists said yesterday – but no recession looms.

HURRICANE MITIGATION – Storm shutters on windows do little to protect a home from hurricane damages if the roof blows off, but the state program to help homeowners bolster their defenses, My Safe Florida Home, has stopped subsidizing most roof retrofits.

MORTGAGE RATES – As financial markets reacted to stronger economic news this week, rates on 30-year mortgages rose to an average of 6.73 percent, the second-highest level of the year, according to Freddie Mac’s weekly nationwide survey.

SUBPRIME LOANS – U.S. House Republicans introduced a bill yesterday to protect borrowers from abusive lending practices – the second major piece of legislation introduced in Congress on the issue this year. The measure would require mortgage lenders to be licensed and proposes a national registration system for lenders, among other provisions.

LUXURY HOUSING – While the subprime U.S. real estate market is in the dirt, high-end U.S. homes are in clover, an analysis of nationwide home sales published Wednesday shows. This is true also of the Naples FL real estate market.