Disney Asked 2,000 Workers to Move. Where Will They Live?
The Walt Disney Company recently announced that 2,000 workers will relocate from Southern California to Lake Nona, Florida.
Disney stated that the move primarily involves workers in “digital technology, finance and product development.”
We can and will debate the business aspects of this decision over the next two years as workers decide whether they will stay with Disney or remain in California.
For the time being, the more exciting conversation centers on where these people will live.
So, what’s housing like in Orlando right now? You can probably guess…
The Insanity of the Housing Market
I’ll start this conversation anecdotally. My wife and I recently started looking at houses again.
Unlike the last time we shopped in 2008, real estate falls under the heading of seller’s market. I mean insanely so.
You may have heard some details or experience the madness firsthand.
That’s certainly what happened to us. We naively expected the pandemic to slow down housing sales.
In reality, the opposite happened. Many jobs transitioned to permanent work-from-home positions.
Suddenly, people no longer needed to live in major metropolitan areas. Instead, folks who faced housing crunches could go anywhere.
In our experience, the real estate industry lost its collective mind. To wit, many houses sold within 12 hours of listing.
By “many,” I mean most of them. People were buying homes sight unseen and without insurance inspections.
Confident sellers dictated terms, requiring payment in cash or even crypto. They also sold homes “as is,” refusing to add concessions for roof damage or other expensive fixes.
In short, people selling homes possessed all the power. People felt so lucky to get an accepted offer that they literally took what they could get.
Perhaps the most surreal conversation we had involved a real estate agent for a popular home builder, one of the largest in the country.
This person told us that we should leave a down payment. In exchange, they would put us on a list for an upcoming home.
However, we couldn’t A) pick the neighborhood, B) have any input on the type of home being built, or C) even be sure of the city of residence.
Some possible locations were 50+ miles away. Even so, the construction firm had so much demand for the product that it refused to promise locality.
Suffice to say that we didn’t buy from them.
Where Would You Like to Live?
Since you’re reading MickeyBlog, you’re most likely a Disney fan. I mean, that’s true of most people anyway. As a people, we collectively love Disney.
So, let’s say that we could all suddenly live anywhere we wanted while keeping our jobs? Where would we like to move?
I had a friend in the rental car industry once tell me that they didn’t like the Alamo business model, as guests could drop off cars wherever they wanted.
She joked that 70 percent of vehicles would wind up in Las Vegas and New York City.
Well, we’ve recently confirmed that a third answer applies. People want to live near Walt Disney World.
I mean, I’m one of them. My wife and I seriously contemplated buying a home in Orlando over the past year. What stopped us?
We couldn’t find much housing inventory in the area. Apparently, the situation has only grown worse during calendar 2021.
Ergo, the news that Disney was forcing employees to move from the greater Los Angeles area to Central Florida struck me as…problematic.
I wanted to verify my suspicion. So, a friend put me in contact with a local real estate agent in Orlando.
Here is a brief housing Q & A I did with Mark Raumaker of Orlando Home Squad, a division of Home Squad Heroes.
Let’s Talk Orlando Housing
MickeyBlog: How challenged are you in getting listings? How would you describe availability vs. demand?
Mark Raumaker: It’s not necessarily hard to get listings… When I talk to somebody about selling their house, they don’t have the next place lined up. That’s the most challenging thing in this current market.
A lot of people have to sell first to buy. Then, they have to find some temporary housing of some sort.
A strategy I’ve been using is the pricing of property extremely competitively and doing a full marketing campaign to get multiple offers (10+) then asking if anyone will let the seller rent back.
That’s worked. The demand is EXTREMELY high.
MickeyBlog: How quickly are houses selling? And are there parameters like cash or hefty down payments or bid deadlines?
Mark Raumaker: They can sell as fast as the first day on the market. A lot of cash buyers or massive down payments are the ones winning a lot of the bidding wars.
It’s hard for first-time homebuyers, for sure. The best strategy right now is to list on a Thursday and collect the highest and best offers on Monday.
That’s the way to get a bidding war. A lot of sellers and agents are leaving money on the table, taking an offer on the first day.
Let’s Talk Buying Tactics
MickeyBlog: What home buying tactics/strategies are you seeing that have worked?
Mark Raumaker: The most common is to pay above appraised value if you are getting a loan.
So, if the asking price is $350,000, and you offer $370,000, the offer needs to say, “The Buyer will pay the gap if it appraised under the contract price to ensure seller is getting $370,000”.
Now, if you don’t have those funds, some strategies to win a competing offer are a zero-day inspection, a nonrefundable deposit, and a strong local lender who will call the listing agent on the buyer’s behalf.
MickeyBlog: What do you see most buyers looking for? Or do they even have that kind of choice right now?
Mark Raumaker: Not really a choice. The demand is so high, you are just happy you get an accepted contract.
I will say, most people relocating here really want a pool…Not a lot of negotiations in the inspection period, unfortunately.
MickeyBlog: What advice do you have for buyers/sellers? Would you recommend urgency or patience?
Mark Raumaker: Urgency for sellers. The demand is so high, and inventory is so low that this is an amazing time to really get a bidding war going.
Let’s Talk about the Future of Central Florida Housing
MickeyBlog: How long has it been going on? Also, do you foresee changes in the near future?
Mark Raumaker: It’s been really crazy since March 2021. I don’t see much changing for a few years.
Especially since COVID, a lot of people can work from anywhere…so they’ve all made their way to work near Disney World!!!
MickeyBlog: Where are your buyers moving from? Where are sellers going? What percentage of your home sales are contingencies?
Mark Raumaker: A lot of buyers are coming from the Northeast, California, and then we have overseas investors.
Sellers are either renting back, finding a rental after they sell to become just a buyer, or staying with families until they get an accepted contract.
Right now, nobody is taking home-to-sell contingencies, and some will take a home-to-close contingency if it is already past the inspection and appraisal contingencies.
What about Lake Nona?
MickeyBlog: Is there available land in Lake Nona to build new neighborhoods?
Mark Raumaker: There is a ton of land in Lake Nona and builders building a lot of homes.
The problem is that there is literally a waitlist for most because of the demand. So it’s taking over a year to build them and move in.
MickeyBlog: How quickly do you expect Lake Nona construction to begin? What would you suggest for transferred Disney workers while they wait?
Mark Raumaker: Not for about six months. They should find a cheap rental, so they don’t waste any money or get on a builder list.
They can also search for a resale that fits their needs as well. If they are going to go with a new construction, there is usually a 10-12% premium to purchase. The better deals will be in a resale home.
MickeyBlog: Do you have any other advice for Disney fans considering moving to the Central Florida area?
Mark Raumaker: DEFINITELY hook up with a top Realtor who can guide you, compete for you, and be honest with you.
We really have all the inside information that can help you make the transition smooth and set up your dream life here right by The Most Magical Place on Earth!!!
MickeyBlog wishes to thank Mr. Raumaker and the folks at Orlando Home Squad for the insights into the upcoming housing market crunch in Orlando/Lake Nona.
If you’re interested in buying/selling a home in the Orlando/Lake Nona area, reach out to Mark here!
Feature Image: Getty Images