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South Florida Real Estate
Buy
Congratulations! You have finally made the decision to take the step and buy real estate. Whether this is your first purchase or 15th, for your primary residence, vacation home, or investment real estate, there are steps you need to go through to ensure the process is a smooth one.
- The first step is to get pre-approved by a lender for a loan. This can be directly from a bank you do business with or through a mortgage broker. This is the most important step to take. Once you are pre-approved, you will know how much house or building you can afford or better yet, how much of a house or building you feel comfortable with. The lender or mortgage broker will give you an idea of what your monthly costs will be and will give you a Good Faith Estimate of closing costs to let you know how much money you will need to bring to the closing table to finalize your purchase.
- Know what you are looking for. Once you are pre-approved, decide what your ideal neighborhood, home, or investment property would be. Are schools important or is it more important that you be close to work? Determine what the “must haves” are. These are the specifics of the property or neighborhood that you are not willing to give up but would be willing to sacrifice a “nice, but not necessary” for. This could be an extra bedroom, pool, specific school district, waterfront criteria etc. Knowing what you are looking for both in a neighborhood and home or investment property is extremely important as it will help keep you focused. Once you narrow down your wants, you will realize you don’t have to look at everything on the market, only those specific properties that meet your criteria.
- Work with a Realtor! I know that sounds like something I would say since I am one but, whether you work with me or another Realtor, a knowledgeable Realtor really will be able to make the process easier. This is my career and I specialize in getting the information you need all in one place. Even if you are a master websurfer, I can help you by giving a one-stop shop for answers, resources and information you will need to make your buying decision. I will even create your own website for you so you can surf the MLS instead of having to go to every real estate site on the web.
Luxury Homes Sales – EWM is #1
Pinecrest Open House 6-27-2010
Miami Open House Weekend 6-27-2010
Wealthy Still Moving to Florida
Forbes’ article Where America’s Money is Moving states that 8 of the top 20 counties where the wealthiest residents are moving are in Florida. In addition to the weather, beaches, lifestyle, drastically reduced real estate, the fact that Florida does not have income taxes continues to make the state one of the top destinations for high income earners.
The number one destination was Collier County. Though most of the people moving there were from other parts of Florida, many also came from northern cities.
Mortgage Applications Decline to Lowest Level Since April, 1997
Despite the decrease in interest rates since April 30 of this year, mortgage applications for home purchase are down to the lowest rates since April 11, 1997. The decrease is largely due to the expiration of the First Time Home Buyers Tax Credit.
Miami Dade Real Estate
10 Things I Love About Aventura
- Laurenzo’s Italian Center – Whether you are a gourmet cook and want amazing Italian ingredients or want something already prepared, you will enjoying cruising up and down the isles of this well-known local gourmet supermarket.
- Founders Park – Located on a 12-acres site, this park has something for everyone. Tennis, ball fields, exercise trails, picnic shelters and a splash park for the kids (residents get into splash park free with id, non-residents pay $10).
- Size/Value of condos. If you are renting or selling, you can usually find a larger condo in Aventura than you could in Brickell or Miami Beach, and usually for less. Search for yourself.
- Location: Close to Ft. Lauderdale, Miami,(and their respective airports and ports) and just a jump to the beach
- Boating
- Don Soffer exercise trail- this 3 mile loop is perfect for running, walking the pets, or taking an evening stroll
- The Farimont Turnberry Golf and Country Club – in addition to having a world class spa and golf course, the restaurants are also amazing.
- William’s Island – this enclave of homes, condos, and town homes, all surrounded by water, includes its own private club and is a relaxing jewel of a community, close to everything in Aventura, including a Fresh Market.
- Proximity to Gulfstream Park – What a great way to spend the day. If watching the horse races isn’t your thing, at least stop by and watch the beautiful animals parade around the courtyard prior to each race, then take off and go eat, shop or dance, at one of the many venues.
- Mo’s Bagel and Diner – My Dad is a New Yorker who hasn’t lived there since he was born, but it’s in his blood, and Mo’s makes him feel like he is back there.
If I were a shopper, I would add the Aventura Mall. I personally can’t stand shopping, but this mall is amazing. It is large, clean and has such a variety of stores. If you can’t find what you are looking for here, you probably don’t need it.
National Flood Insurance Program Set to Expire — Again
Congress didn’t get around to approving an extension go the National Flood Insurance Program so it will expire for the third time this year. Talk about frustrating! If you have a closing in an area that requires flood insurance before Congress gets around to extending the program, have the seller transfer their existing policy to you. To find out how, visit the FEMA guidelines.
Deering Bay, Coral Gables, FL – Progressive Brokers Open
Are Real Estate Sales Really Up in Miami?
If you read the papers, listens to the news, or talk to friends, neighbors and acquaintences about the real estate market, you could be very confused as to what is “real” about it.
- Foreclosures and short sales are still high.
- Unemployment is still high and actually rose more vs. high and dropping.
- Inventory is still high.
Yet, week after week, our EWM office in Coral Gables is selling more than we are listing. This week alone, we had over $28,000,000 (yes, that is million and it was closer to $29) in sales and leases, the majority in sales. We had 29 sales vs 8 sale listings. What is even more amazing about the sales in our office this week:
- 11 of them (38%) were over $500,000 vs 9 that were under$300,000, which is where most of the market has been this year;
- 7 of them were over $1,000,000 so the high end market is starting to move.
What is especially important in these numbers is that the higher end sales are not relying on the first time home buyers tax credit, since they don’t qualify, and they are buying anyway. This leads me to believe that the real estate market is starting to stabilize, especially in certain areas.
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