By Kerry Smith Overall sentiments among Floridians remain 19.3 points below pre-pandemic, but month-to-month consumers’ attitudes rose 1.7 points as the state slowly bounces back. GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Among Florida consumers, optimism appears to be slowly gaining ground. According to the University of Florida’s monthly consumer sentiment survey, state residents’ attitudes ticked up 1.7 points in April to 83 from March’s revised figure of 81.3. A similar national survey found consumer sentiment increased 3.4 points. “Consumer sentiment dropped at an unprecedented rate in the second quarter of 2020, when it tumbled 26 points between February and April,” says Hector H.
Read More

By Kerry Smith New rule: Debt collectors must give tenants written notice about their rights under the CDC moratorium – and they can’t misrepresent a tenant’s eligibility for protection. To spread the message, the consumer bureau directly contacted landlords who represent about 2 million units. WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Acting Director Dave Uejio and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Acting Chairwoman Rebecca Kelly Slaughter sent notification letters to the nation’s largest apartment landlords, which collectively own more than 2 million units. The letters remind landlords of federal protections that keep tenants in their homes and stop
Read More

By Jim Turner The Executive Order doesn’t block individual businesses from requiring masks or social distancing, but it limits the authority of cities and counties to mandate them. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended all local-government coronavirus emergency orders on Monday as he signed a bill that makes permanent his ban on COVID-19 vaccine “passports” and limits the authority of cities and counties in future health-care crises. “My message is that the vaccines protect you. Get vaccinated, and then live your life as if you are protected,” DeSantis said during an event at the Big Catch at Salt Creek,
Read More

By Rob Samouce To protect residents, some boards have suggested a policy that would allow only vaccinated residents and guests, not unvaccinated ones, to access common elements. NAPLES, Fla. – Now that a lot of the population is getting a COVID vaccination, we are hearing that a few Boards of Directors of area Condominium or Homeowners’ (HOA) Associations are floating the idea of considering requiring proof of vaccination for owners, family members, tenants and guests in order to use the common area amenities such as the clubhouse, social room, fitness room or swimming pool. For the following reasons we do
Read More

By Ron Hurtibise By the time negotiations ended and bills were passed, no interested party got everything they wanted under bills passed by the Florida Legislature, including the state’s attorneys, insurers or homeowners. But changes should help maintain a viable private insurance market in the state. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – No one was thrilled with the insurance changes that were passed on the final day of the Florida Legislature’s spring session – not the insurance industry and not consumers’ attorneys. Insurers didn’t get to kill the law that requires them, and not their customers, to pay to replace damaged roofs. Failure
Read More

By Amber Randall In Dec., 63% of homebuyers made an offer on a house they didn’t visit, up from 45% five months earlier. Pandemic travel fears and today’s tech are part of the reason. MIAMI – The first time Jason Mullan saw his new home was the day he showed up to move in. The 36-year-old from New York City bought the house entirely online, without ever seeing it in person. He’s among a growing number of homebuyers, particularly millennials, investing thousands of dollars on Florida homes they’ve seen only on a cellphone or a computer screen. Some 63% of
Read More