A recent Forbes article rated Coral Gables, FL as one of the fastest moving luxury neighborhoods in terms of days on 
market. Forbes’ rating system, which is based on the 500 most expensive zip codes, is better than other housing indexes which cover too broad of an area to give an accurate picture of what is happening in a specific neighborhood, but their assessment also has some flaws. For example, for Coral Gables, which was rated number 5 by Forbes, the zip code they used was 33146. Don’t get me wrong, 33146 is an expensive zip code, but Coral Gables, which extends significantly further South from the better known business and restaurant district which is their formal downtown, has 7 zip codes! Based on an MLS search today, there were 69 Active listings ranging in price from $13.5 million down to $395,000 in the 33146 zip code. 14 of those listings were waterfront. However, there were a total of 261 Active MLS listings in the Gables, South of US 1. The most expensive listing was $49.5 million and was in the 33143 zip code, which also had higher closed sales prices. Having Forbes rate Coral Gables the 5th fastest moving luxury market, with an average of 66 days for the top 10 zips vs 115 days average for the whole 500 index, is great news for Coral Gables, but it doesn’t tell the story for luxury real estate in the Gables. There were several zips and luxury price ranges which had significantly longer days on market. When pricing your luxury home for sale or making an offer on your purchase of one, make sure you check with a local luxury expert.
predicting that the housing market is at or close to bottom, the commercial sector is just starting to see massive defaults. A skyscraper in New York that was purchased for approximately $50o million in 2006 just sold for $100,000! The commercial real estate market is the worst in decades and there are billions worth of distressed properties in every market. This creates an amazing opportunity for long term real estate investors.
Could it be? While it is too early to say for sure, there are definitely signs that real estate market in Miami-Dade County may be turning. As I have said before, this recovery is going to be location and building specific, meaning some are going to recover faster and with less overall price decreases than others.
Chinese drywall could be present in your home if it was built or extensively remodeled between 2004 and 2008. Due to the building boom and major hurricane damage during those years, drywall had to be imported for the first time. Unfortunately, Chinese drywall has high levels of chemicals that we do not find in drywall made in the United States.
Unlike the television show,