Does Your Home Have the Features Buyers Want?

Whether you are currently living in a flood zone or not you will want to check the new boundaries if you are living in Hillsborough or Pinellas County.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) released preliminary updates to flood map for the coastal areas of Hillsborough County which could change your risk and your insurance rates.

The proposed changes, would impact, as many as 60,000 people between the City of Tampa and Hillsborough County, according to county officials. Eugene Henry with the Hillsborough County Public Works Department said that there will be several open houses coming up to help homeowners understand the changes.

These proposed changes if they go into effect could impact homeowners in 3 ways:

1. You’ll be in a flood zone when you weren’t before

2. You’ll be in a higher risk flood zone

3. Or the base flood elevation on your property will change

 
All three could impact the costs of flood insurance that your mortgage lender requires.
 
Because these changes are only proposed it is important for homeowners to voice their concerns.
 
Anyone who thinks their property is incorrectly categorized can submit an appeal between April 3^rd and July 3^rd .

Once FEMA looks at all the appeals and comments and incorporates changes, the maps will be finalized. There’s a possibility some residences could be grandfathered in, but there’s also the chance lenders will still update.

The new maps are available on FEMA’s website click here, more information can be found by clicking here.

Hong Kong is Building
an $80 billion Island to fix its Housing Shortage

Hong Kong will spend around $80 billion to build one of the world’s biggest artificial islands.

Secretary for Development Michael Wong said in a speech Tuesday that around 1,000 hectares of land would be constructed to deal with Hong Kong’s “serious shortage of land supply.”

The project’s total cost will be around 624 billion Hong Kong dollars ($79.5 billion), Wong said. The new “land” will be formed near the existing island of Lantau and will provide up to 260,000 residential units, he added. Seventy percent of the new homes will be public housing.

Hong Kong is home to about 7.4 million people.  High demand and short supply have driven property prices to “unaffordable” levels in recent years.

Although Wong said the new island would help Hong Kong “withstand the increasing pressure of the population,” the plans have faced criticism. Greenpeace responded to Wong’s announcement with a statement urging the government to develop Hong Kong’s former agricultural sites instead, claiming that it would be a more cost effective and environmentally friendly strategy. Zhu Jiang, senior project director at Greenpeace, said the move was a “retrogression.”

To read the full article click here.

Craig's Take:
After Los Angeles? Interesting approach to solving the lack of land in very populated dense areas. Based on my rough calculations the cost per unit (home) is approximately $305,769. That would be affordable housing for areas like New York City, Los Angeles and San Francisco if located near the center of each of those cities. It is fascinating to think something like this possible.   
 

30 Favorite
Easter Brunch Ideas

A chance to view/own the Vinny Testaverde family home. This luxurious Lake Front Estate will be for sale by Auction on Tuesday, April 9th at 7:00 PM. Located right on Lake Keystone and spanning over 12,700 heated square feet, this marvelous home includes six bedrooms, seven full bathrooms and four half baths. Indoor amenities include a beautiful bright open floor plan, master suite with private terrace, movie theater, game room, dance studio, sauna, full size gym, sun room, billiard room with bar, and wine cellar. Stretching six acres, the meticulously maintained grounds hold a tennis/basketball court, heated pool and spa with outdoor kitchen, private golf simulation room, four car garage, private gate, boat house overlooking Lake Keystone, boat dock with lift, and is zoned to accommodate equestrian hobbies as well.