Top Stories for 2008 on PCBDAILY.COM

2008 has been a monumental year for us at pcbdaily. We’ve seen super awesome growth, expanded our content base tremendously and have reached out to more people than we had ever expected.

Looking back, the top stories covered good times and bad, with some of the bad times being good for others and some of the good times being bad for some.

4 of the top 10 articles talked about new additions to our area, namely Pier Park and the new Panama City Bay County International Airport (I know, we need a new name, and that will be addressed in 2009).

Walking around the mall, it is sometimes hard to imagine that this time last year, Pier Park’s roads were not even paved yet. Colorful buildings had been erect for some time, but the mall as a whole was still just under 2 months from opening. Looking back, it amazes me how quick somethings get done.

The new airport has hit milestones aplenty during 2008. Just a little over a year ago, the airport groundbreaking ceremony took place. When 2008 rolled in, the airport was caught in a legal battle with the NRDC and the Fiends of PFN.

In what was expected to draw out for months, the case was totally thrown out on January 25th, clearing the Airport Authority for construction immediately. The case was in many instances described as frivolous, and was not taken seriously by the judge. Opponents touted the failure of an affirmative vote in a non-binding referendum vote, but were never able to validate the fairness of the actual vote in regards to it being represented to all those affected.

For the new airport, 2008 brought the site from a stumpy, patchy 4,000 acre site to a cleared, grubbed site that is almost completely brought to grade with terminal parking installed, foundation work for the terminal complete, an asphalt-paved runway with some concrete and funding for a full 10,000 foot runway.

As the economy has plunged during 2008, so have real estate prices. Now, this has been a topic of hot debate on pcbdaily. I’ve oft been blasted by the Realtor community for spreading “bad news” and not “helping” the market by taking part in the media frenzy of negativity. However, the reality is, those that are complaining should be putting that energy into finding buyers because now is a great time to buy real estate.

Plunging prices mean good deals for all buyers. I understand the hesitation and skepticism, but things will not always be this way, and in 10 years, us agents will be doing our homework on baypa.net thinking to ourselves that we should have bought as much as possible back in 2008 and 2009 when prices were so cheap. 3 of the top 10 articles of 2008 were specifically about condo auctions in Panama City Beach. The Palazzo condo auction story took the cake, trailed by the Ocean Reef Auction and the cancelled Marina Landing auction. The Seahaven auction actually made it in the top 15 and is only a few weeks old.

The other 3 articles of the top 10 articles of 2008 on pcbdaily have to do with problems at local condos and the condo market as a whole. Laketown Wharf has been a sore topic for many with the developer being a self-proclaimed Trump with a Drawl – Jerry Wallace.

A largely vacant, 750 condo, elephantine monolith, Laketown Wharf actually had great aspirations, with some possibility of success had it come unto creation mid 2004. With huge swimming pools, a Balagio-style fountain/light show, a 650-seat live performance theatre, 5 restaurants and 1,000’s of square feet of retail space, it was planned to be almost a small town.

With less than 70 closings, it has been largely regarded as a complete and utter failure, but Laketown Wharf yet has a bright future with Corus stepping in. 2009 should bring something good for that development, hopefully.

Anyway, enough – enjoy the articles and looking back on 2008!

10.) Marina Landing Auction – CANCELED

9.) New Airport is on Schedule – Construction Update

8.) 35 Condos Sold at Ocean Reef Auction

7.) Pier Park – Margaritaville Grand Opening in Panama City Beach (video)

6.) Construction Update – New Panama City Bay County International Airport

5.) 50 Palazzo Condos Sold at Auction on Panama City Beach

4.) Problems at Nautilus Cove Condominiums?

3). Panama City Beach Condo Market Analysis After The Palazzo Auction

2.) Pier Park Grand Opening was a Smash Hit

1.) Laketown Wharf Busts, Leaves Developer Crying

Monologue of a Laketown Wharf Buyer

If you are in the market for furniture, I have some for sale. Actually, it’s a credit at Resort Interiors/Resort Ready Rooms. I own $17,432.00 worth of furniture, accessories, custom window treatments, bedspreads and shower curtains. However, I have never seen it (except in the store) nor do I have a condo to put it in!

You see, I’m one of the Laketown Wharf contract owners who decided, for us, the better financial decision would be to pay the developer an additional 5%, on top of the 10% we had put down, to get out of the contract rather than close. We made that decision in July and signed the official termination agreement mid-August. Now we have this furniture we do not need so the folks at Resort Interiors/Resort Ready Rooms are allowing me to transfer the majority of my credit (the custom window treatments, etc. are not returnable) to someone else who needs furniture!

You may be wondering why I bought furniture before closing on my condo. I certainly wish I hadn’t. If you want to read my condo story, then read on. I bet many of you can relate :(. If you just want to learn more about the furniture credit details, check out my craigslist ad.

History:
I’ve wanted a place at the beach for a long time. I was never super serious, but in 2004, when the market was going crazy, I thought if we didn’t act soon, we’d never be able to afford a place at the beach so we jumped into the Real Estate frenzy by securing a contract at Laketown Wharf.

I had passed up a pre-construction opportunity in St. Pete Beach in 1998 that I regretted. So, by golly, I wasn’t going to miss the PCB Real Estate bus!! We couldn’t afford beachfront at the 2004 prices so we settled for what we believed (and I still do!) would one day be a very cool place to stay/live across from the beach. We signed the hard contract in Feb 2005.

The ground-breaking ceremony was held in May 2005. In August 2005, my husband shows me an article on msn.com titled “Condo market is showing signs of cooling”. Ugh!

Nevertheless, I was still optimistic about Laketown Wharf. In Sept 2006, I got my first mailing from Resort Interiors stating they were the preferred furnishing supplier for Laketown Wharf. Since I was in Phase 2, I didn’t need to buy anything immediately but started my correspondence with them. In Jan 2007, I got a second mailing encouraging me to choose and buy my furniture now because “I’d be able to rent my unit and make money on my investment soon after closing”. They also had 2 other reasons why I should buy now and they even gave me a discount if I bought a package by a specific date! So, I drove to Destin and visited their store in Feb 2007, finalized my decision, and bought my package that May. I financed it free for a year but when my year was up, I had to write a check to the financing company and still no condo to put it in!! BUT, by this time, the developer had starting coming down on prices. In June 2008, I was notified that my unit was now only $299/sq ft., down from the contracted price of $376! What a bargain!

But, my husband, being much smarter and less emotional than I, did not want to close. I talked him in to going to Laketown Wharf, actually staying there, before making the final decision. It was a nice stay even though many units were incomplete and there were no shops/restaurants open yet. In fact, since I don’t like crowds, it was great – except for this obnoxious softball team staying there, but I won’t go into that.

The units are spacious and the staff/security guards were very nice and accommodating. My son loved the two pools that were open. The lake fountain show was wonderful and the walk to the beach was no big deal. In fact, my son preferred the pools to the beach most days. We talked about how cool the place will be once all the commercial space is occupied. I was ready to close when we came home but after many hours of crunching numbers, we decided walking away from our deposit would be the best thing for us to do.

Present Day:
I’ve heard the current offer to those folks who still have contracts with Laketown Wharf (whether in a law suit or not) is $224/sq. ft. Not sure where the bottom is. The bank says they plan to furnish and rent ½ of the unsold units and I hear they are offering super low rent rates to get commercial business in.

In the meantime, I still have this furniture credit I would like to sell to one of you lucky folks who managed to time the market better than I. Or maybe you’re looking to replace some of your current furniture. Whatever your reason, you’ll save money by purchasing this credit. The ladies at Resort Interiors/Resort Ready Rooms are wonderful to work with and I appreciate them for allowing this transfer of credit.

The amount of credit available for transfer is $15,027. The window treatments are non-refundable but if you’re in the market for custom window treatments, bedspreads, etc. I’ll be happy to get the measurements and see if they work for you. I paid $2,405 for them and am willing to take $2000. Check out my craigslist ad.

Laketown Wharf – Corus Bank bracing for money outflow

I’ve had some dialogue with a Corus Investor who has been kind enough to keep me updated with what Corus is up to regarding Laketown Wharf. Below is the most recent update:

1) They suspended payment of interest on $404m of debentures (type of bond). This is the only debt that Corus (holding company) has, other than deposits. The rules of the debenture allow this for up to 20 quarters. The holders of the debentures cannot be too happy. This was done to preserve cash for operations. No big deal unless you need the interest and own the debentures.

2) They disclosed that they formally applied to TARP funds from the Treasury. If granted, they will issue preferred stock to US Treasury at 5% for 5 years. I DO NOT think they would have applied if there was any chance of rejection. This may also force a merger of Corus with another bank, but I put that at less than 5% odds because the Glickman family owns half the bank and they are not going to be too happy taking orders from anyone.

One of the Glickman wives sold about 20% of her shares. No big deal. the proceeds were enough to buy her a $30k car. She’d probably going to use the proceeds for a divorce! Her spouse owns about 6 million shares.

Bank Says Laketown Wharf will be 'taken care of'

One of the Corus Bank investors sent me an email with the Quarter 3 report of Corus Bank that has a paragraph that briefly speaks into their Laketown Wharf holding. The paragraph gives some indication as to their plans of the building in the near future.

The remaining component of nonperforming assets is OREO, which consists of three properties as of September 30, 2008. The largest is a condominium project located in Panama City, Florida, which Corus took possession of in September 2008. At the time Corus took possession, the outstanding loan balance of $96.5 million was transferred to OREO on the balance sheet. Prior to the transfer, Corus recorded a charge-off of $30.2 million. While certificates of occupancy have been received for the entire project and over 60 units have been sold, management estimates that an additional $10 million will be necessary to complete all work on the building. The Bank also intends to pay an additional $5 million to furnish approximately half of the unsold units and make them available for rent. The ultimate goal, however, is to sell all of the individual units.

I found this extremely interesting, and actually quite encouraging. Not that a huge bank would ever let a holding this large “go to the birds”, I’ve seen stranger. It is very important to the image of Panama City Beach that Laketown Wharf maintains a good image and that something does indeed happen with this property, whether the remaining condos are sold for whatever they can be sold for, or rented.

Talking to a friend today, I was told that Laketown Wharf has no formal agreement with anyone for beach access. I hope that Corus can negotiate a permanent solution for the guest, tenants and owners to have access to the beach.

The rest of the report provides interesting insight into how a large bank is handling the current economic condition of our great country.

The report seems to indicate the banks willingness to finish the job and do what it takes to move forward. A property they took possession of in California, they will be funding, finishing, marketing, and selling.

Laketown Wharf Busts, Leaves Developer Crying

We’ve all heard the rumors about what is happening with Laketown Wharf. Jerry Wallace, the developer, once positively referred to the area around Laketown Wharf as a “condo canyon” and himself as the Trump with a drawl. I bet he doesn’t feel so Trumpish now.

I was VERY critical of this development from the get-go, extremely worried what this “behemoth” would do to the image of our area. A largely vacant, 750 condo, elephantine monolith, Laketown Wharf actually had great aspirations, with some possibility of success had it come unto creation mid 2004. With huge swimming pools, a Balagio-style fountain/light show, a 650-seat live performance theatre, 5 restaurants and 1,000’s of square feet of retail space, it was planned to be almost a small town. And, it is actually kind of awesome, even though it is not on the beach.

On the 12th of September, Jerry Wallace, developer of Laketown Wharf and President of Laketown Wharf, Inc. signed over the remaining unclosed units to Corus Bank, the institution that originally financed the construction of the project. With only 8% of the 750+ condos built actually closed, the only option was to hand the rest back to the bank.

At this point, a new chapter is created in the life of Laketown Wharf. The sad part is that the image of a huge traffic crossing point on the beach is now completely up to a financial institution that may or may not have our best interests in mind.

As of two weeks ago, it had looked like the grounds were being neglected, but after going by today, I noticed that some of the pools had been filled back up. The water-features were not on, nor were any of the fountains and the whole place looked like a ghost town.

We’ll be following this closely.

Doc 1

Doc 2

Have Panama City Beach Condos Hit Bottom Yet? Probably Not.

From www.condosaletrends.com

Jason’s April 12, 2008 article titled “Have We Hit Bottom Yet?” implies that because there are no negative newspaper stories concerning the current real estate market, that we must be nearing the bottom. Jason quotes NAR chief economist, Lawrence Yum predicting “Notable Improvement” in 2008. I have been following Yum’s analyses and predictions from the months leading up to the top of the real estate bubble (mid to late 2005) up to his latest prediction. The thing that stands out about Yum’s analyses is that he has been 100% wrong on every prediction. We all want to believe that the bottom of this market cycle is near.

Continue reading “Have Panama City Beach Condos Hit Bottom Yet? Probably Not.” →