Categories
Buying Commercial Real Estate Luxury Real Estate Selling

Private Islands: What The Rich and Famous Are Buying

The Exhumas, Bahamas is where the rich and famous are buying islands, according to an article in the July 28 edition of the Wall Street Journal. 

Some of the issues that arise with developing these islands, such as importing electricity, cell phone towers, water purifiers,  the building materials and even, in some cases, the palm trees, can make development extremely costly. 

San Jose Island, in the Pearl Islands off the coast of Panama, does not have a lot of these issues.  Granted, at 11,000 acres, approximately twice the size of Key West,  it is a much larger island than the ones in Exuma.  It has its own rivers and streams, providing fresh water, as well as a water treatment facility capable of producing 3,000 gallons of water an hour, and a 10,000 gallon storage tank.  It has a 5000 linear foot landing strip, lots of trees, including palm trees, mooring facilities, and a boutique resort, Hacienda del Mar.

A short 20 minute flight to Panama City, Panama, means you are  in close proximity to world class entertainment and medical facilities, including John Hopkins at Punta Pacifica Hospital.

Compared to the most expensive island for sale in the Bahamas, Cave Cay, at $440,000 per acre, San Jose Island , at $22,545 per acre, seems like a downright bargain.  Oh, I almost forgot…Panama doesn’t have hurricanes!

One of 57 Beaches on San Jose Island

Categories
Florida Life Restaurants Things To Do

Miami Spice Offers Great Discounts At Select Restaurants

Miami Spice has grown into an annual two month event, running August 1 through September 30, offering deals at some of our areas finest restaurants.  Make sure to check the site frequently for updated restaurants, menus, and specials.

Categories
Selling

Elizabeth Taylor Collection to Be Auctioned By Christie’s

Christie’s will be auctioning off The Collection of Elizabeth Taylor over 4 days in December, 2011.  Starting in September, there will be a three-month tour, with stops in Moscow, London, Los Angeles, Dubai, Geneva, Paris and Hong Kong, highlighting portions of her collection.  This is sure to be a historic auction.

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Categories
Neighborhood News Pinecrest Selling

How Walker Friendly is Your Home?

Miami just ranked 8, with a score of 72.5,  in a walkability scoring of  the 50 largest cities in the U.S.  Having moved from San Francisco, ranked 2 with a walkability score of 84.9, I decided to check out my home’s walk score.  I live in Pinecrest, a suburb, so I wasn’t too surprised to find out that my walk score was pretty dismal at 22.  Not all areas of Pinecrest would score that low.  If your home is in the western portion of Pinecrest, which is a lot closer to shops and  U.S. 1, your home would score much higher.

Recent studies throughout the country have shown that more people want to give up commuting, and the accompanying high gas bills, and live in more walker friendly neighborhoods.  So, what is your home’s walk score?

Categories
Selling

You Have An Executed Contract On Your Home! Now the Real Work Begins.

Before you start celebrating your executed contract, take a deep breath and realize you are only half way to the closing table.  You still have to get through inspections and, if the deal is based on financing, the appraisal. 

In order to make it through inspections, you may want to fix the little things you have been meaning to since you listed the house, such as the faucet that started dripping or the burned out light bulb.  These things sound minor, but they can add up in an inspection report.

If you did not have a list of all of the upgrades you have done to the house, make sure to make one now and give it to the appraiser.  In today’s market there are so many distressed properties, many of which are in poor condition, dragging down pricing, it can help to highlight your home’s main attributes, such as new appliances, roof, etc.  Even if your house is in great condition, do not be surprised if your home does not appraise.  Recent changes to the process have resulted in much more stringent appraisal standards.

Categories
Buying Market Summary

Miami Real Estate: More Signs the Market is Improving

New Construction in the Gables
New Construction

 

As I drive around town, I am seeing a lot more new construction.   This new single family home is going up in north Gables.   I have seen other ones being built in South Miami and Pinecrest as well.

In addition to the new construction I have been seeing many remodeling projects.  Significant additions are being added on to many existing homes.

All of this bodes well for the overall market.  Are you remodeling or adding on to your house?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Categories
Things To Do

Shipwreck Tours

Rangers at Biscayne National Park offer snorkel tours of six shipwrecks.  Or you can access them with your own boat and get to see an even more in depth tour by scuba diving them.

Categories
Buying Investment Real Estate Market Summary Selling

Miami Real Estate: The Market is Changing

If this week’s sales vs listings in just one of EWM’s offices is any indication, the market is changing.  Our Coral Gables office had 37 residential sales versus 10 new listings and 27 leases vs 8 new rentals.  Our total for this week, which include the sale of a commercial property was almost $35,000,000.  This market change doesn’t mean that prices are going up yet, but it does mean we are clearing our inventory.  We are seeing an increase in rental rates, however, as more people decide to rent and the inventory decreases.

If you need to sell, now is the time to do it since inventory is decreasing and there is demand.  Remember to price it right, however, since pricing is everything in this market.  If you don’t need to sell, but want to take advantage of the current market, use it to move up, downsize, while you rent out your current home.  Alternatively, stay in your home and buy a rental property. 

If you are planning to buy, now is definitely the time to buy due to a combination of low interest rates and low prices.  If you don’t buy soon, you may find yourself priced out of the market or with even more limited choices.

Categories
Freebies Neighborhood News Pinecrest Things To Do

Free Things To Do In Miami: Photography Class

All below was taken directly from the Pinecrest Gardens, Garden Gossip Newsletter.

Miami in Bloom
 
 

Photography for the Rest of Us, Tuesday, July 26 at 7:00 p.m.

 A Free Photography Workshop

The Photography For The Rest of Us workshop was developed to teach the basics of digital photography. The goal is simple: to make a better photographer out of every person we can reach out to, no matter which camera you own.

In this fun and informative workshop, you’ll learn the basics about composition, use of flash, the shooting modes almost every camera offers and much more. The instructor, Ed Schneider, also the founder of Photography4us, is a professional award-wining photographer whose goal is to help you understand and enjoy taking photos. Ed’s experience and candid approach can virtually guarantee this event will change forever the way you take photos.

Thanks to a collaborative effort from Kendall Camera Club and The Village of Pinecrest, this is a rare opportunity to see Ed Schneider speak at an open event free of charge. Seats are limited. Register today for the Photography For The Rest of Us workshop.

Categories
Things To Do

Free Things To Do in Miami: Deering Estate

Tomorrow is a Fee-Free Play Day at Deering Estate.