Categories
Neighborhood News Pinecrest

November is Carnival Time At Pinecrest Schools

For fun, inexpensive ways to spend time outdoors with the kids, head to the Village of Pinecrest schools for their carnivals.

Pinecrest Elementary’s Wild West Fest is this Saturday.  Howard Dr. Elementary is also having theirs this Saturday from 10:00-4:00.

 

 

Palmetto Elementary has their Jungle Jamz on Saturday, November 17 from 11-4.

 

 

 

 

 

Categories
Luxury Real Estate Neighborhood News Pinecrest

Welcome to Pinecrest, Zo and Tracy!

Welcome Home!

The Mournings sold their home in Coral Gables and downsized to the Village of Pinecrest.  The Mournings join several distinguished residents who call Pinecrest home.

Categories
Neighborhood News Pinecrest

Jennifer Wollmann Endorsed By Pinecrest Tribune for Pinecrest Council

The Pinecrest Tribune, a Community Newspapers paper, has endorsed Jennifer Wollmann for the Village of Pinecrest Council, Seat 1.  Among their reasons for the endorsement were:

  • Commitment to educational issues
  • Concerns over US 1 proposals by FPL and MDX
  • Real estate experience
  • Knowledge of issues that concern Pinecrest residents
  • Desire to keep Pinecrest a multi-generational community

Thank you, Community Newspapers!

Categories
Coconut Grove Restaurants

Peacock Cafe: Answer to Where’s J Wo

Outdoor dining at Peacock Cafe

The Peacock Garden Cafe in Coconut Grove is the answer to Where’s J Wo September 29 outing.  The whimsical decor and beautiful gardens make it feel like you are eating at a friend’s house instead of at a restaurant.  It is the perfect place for outdoor dining, especially when our cooler weather arrives!

Categories
Coconut Grove Restaurants

Peacock Cafe: Answer to Where's J Wo

Outdoor dining at Peacock Cafe

The Peacock Garden Cafe in Coconut Grove is the answer to Where’s J Wo September 29 outing.  The whimsical decor and beautiful gardens make it feel like you are eating at a friend’s house instead of at a restaurant.  It is the perfect place for outdoor dining, especially when our cooler weather arrives!

Categories
Buying Pinecrest Selling

Gated Communities in Pinecrest: Arabesque

Arabesque in Pinecrest

The lush, gated entrance to these 18 single family homes, is located just off of 77 Avenue in Pinecrest.  The Hollub-built homes were constructed between 1988 and 1993 and range from between 3,000 to just under 4,000 square feet.  Located in northwest Pinecrest, Arabasque has wonderful access to U.S. 1 and the Palmetto, and is walking distance to parks, Miami Palmetto Senior High School, shops and restaurants.  The quarter acre lots make these homes some of the most affordable single family homes in a gated community.  The last home sold in Arabesque sold in May of 2012 for $652,000 or $174 per square foot.  The annual maintenance for homes in this gated community is $1700.

 

Categories
Brickell/Downtown Miami Coconut Grove Coral Gables Neighborhood News Palmetto Bay Pinecrest South Miami

Green Corridor Extends From Cutler Bay to Miami Shores

Ygrene Energy Fund

A green corridor comprised of Cutler Bay, Palmetto Bay, Pinecrest, South Miami, Coral Gables, Miami and Miami Shores has been formed to assist in financing energy related improvements to property.  Formaly named The Property Assessed Clean Energy District (PACE), this new corridor will enable businesses and residents to finance energy related improvements to their properties through a special assessment on their property.  This program is strictly voluntary and provides a list of contractors as well as energy efficiency assessments.   If you can save money on your electric bill, would you take advantage of this program?

Categories
Buying Neighborhood News Pinecrest Selling

Do You Know Who Your Realtor Is? Make Sure You Aren’t Dealing With A Highjacker

I want to preface this blog with the statement that I did not wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.   As a matter of fact, I had a perfect morning.  Woke up before the sun was up, had coffee, read the paper,  had a nice long walk with the dog,  chatted with other neighborhood walkers and came back home to start work.  While I was leafing through my daily Google alerts, I came across a listing in Pinecrest.  I clicked on the link and was immediately familiar with one of Josie Wang’s listings.  It happens to be a modern home in Pinecrest at 9500 SW 60 Ct., and is just around the corner from my house.

9500 SW 60 Ct., Pinecrest

As I scrolled through the link, I did not see anything that mentioned Josie or AVATAR, her broker.  I know that a lot of agents and brokers have a myriad of websites, blogs, and aggregators (such as Trulia and Zillow) in order to promote their listings and maximize a seller’s internet exposure.  However, I also know that most agents and brokers clearly advertise themselves on these pages as well, so I immediately realized that this was someone hijacking Josie’s listing as their own.  Sure enough, when I scrolled to the very bottom of the page, the last line read that the listing was AVATAR’s.  I can assure you, I am going to be one of the few who reads that very last line.  I immediately sent an e-mail to Josie and contacted leaders in the Miami Realtors Association.  This is an increasingly common occurrence that needs to be stopped.

This exact thing happened to Carole Smith, a Realtor in my same EWM office.  Carole took action on the hijacking of her listing and I applaud her and urge all Realtors and sellers do the same.  Even though she is extremely busy, she took the time out to file a complaint, blog about the issue and post the blog on her Facebook page.  The feedback and frustration she heard back from other agents and individuals  shows how rapidly this unscrupulous practice is spreading.

Why should you care?

1) If you are a Realtor, it should be obvious.  As a listing agent, we spend hundreds to thousands of dollars to develop a marketing strategy as unique as each property.  This includes pictures, videos, and verbiage to highlight the property.  We also take time to get to know other features about the property and the neighborhood it is in.  When someone takes that information and passes it off as their own, it should be the same as plagiarism or copyright infringement.

2) If you are a seller, number one above applies to you as does the following:  the listing agent has information that may need to be shared with a buyer or buyer’s agent but that isn’t specified in the marketing literature.  If the hijacker is passing your property off as being their listing, you have no control over what they are saying to hook the buyer.  The listing agent also has spent the time getting to know you, your home, neighborhood and the specific properties that make your home special.  This added knowledge helps you get the most money for your home and allows for disclosure of issues that may affect the buyer upon their purchase, thereby avoiding potential problems after the sale.

3)  If you are a buyer BEWARE.  The main reason these agents/brokers hijack other agent/broker listings is to find you!  Some of them may be new in the business, focus on buyer representation vs listings, or simply not have enough of their own listings.  If they clearly acknowledge that this listing is another agent’s/broker’s, most agent’s have no problem with the practice of having their listings posted on another agent’s  website or blog.  Most of us want the maximum exposure for our listings and are happy to “share” (that is basically what IDX is about) our listings to get them sold faster and at market price, which is the price you and the seller agree to.

If these hijackers act unethically with their own peers, is this someone you want representing you in your purchase, when your money is on the line?

 

Categories
Buying Neighborhood News Pinecrest Selling

Do You Know Who Your Realtor Is? Make Sure You Aren't Dealing With A Highjacker

I want to preface this blog with the statement that I did not wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.   As a matter of fact, I had a perfect morning.  Woke up before the sun was up, had coffee, read the paper,  had a nice long walk with the dog,  chatted with other neighborhood walkers and came back home to start work.  While I was leafing through my daily Google alerts, I came across a listing in Pinecrest.  I clicked on the link and was immediately familiar with one of Josie Wang’s listings.  It happens to be a modern home in Pinecrest at 9500 SW 60 Ct., and is just around the corner from my house.

9500 SW 60 Ct., Pinecrest

As I scrolled through the link, I did not see anything that mentioned Josie or AVATAR, her broker.  I know that a lot of agents and brokers have a myriad of websites, blogs, and aggregators (such as Trulia and Zillow) in order to promote their listings and maximize a seller’s internet exposure.  However, I also know that most agents and brokers clearly advertise themselves on these pages as well, so I immediately realized that this was someone hijacking Josie’s listing as their own.  Sure enough, when I scrolled to the very bottom of the page, the last line read that the listing was AVATAR’s.  I can assure you, I am going to be one of the few who reads that very last line.  I immediately sent an e-mail to Josie and contacted leaders in the Miami Realtors Association.  This is an increasingly common occurrence that needs to be stopped.

This exact thing happened to Carole Smith, a Realtor in my same EWM office.  Carole took action on the hijacking of her listing and I applaud her and urge all Realtors and sellers do the same.  Even though she is extremely busy, she took the time out to file a complaint, blog about the issue and post the blog on her Facebook page.  The feedback and frustration she heard back from other agents and individuals  shows how rapidly this unscrupulous practice is spreading.

Why should you care?

1) If you are a Realtor, it should be obvious.  As a listing agent, we spend hundreds to thousands of dollars to develop a marketing strategy as unique as each property.  This includes pictures, videos, and verbiage to highlight the property.  We also take time to get to know other features about the property and the neighborhood it is in.  When someone takes that information and passes it off as their own, it should be the same as plagiarism or copyright infringement.

2) If you are a seller, number one above applies to you as does the following:  the listing agent has information that may need to be shared with a buyer or buyer’s agent but that isn’t specified in the marketing literature.  If the hijacker is passing your property off as being their listing, you have no control over what they are saying to hook the buyer.  The listing agent also has spent the time getting to know you, your home, neighborhood and the specific properties that make your home special.  This added knowledge helps you get the most money for your home and allows for disclosure of issues that may affect the buyer upon their purchase, thereby avoiding potential problems after the sale.

3)  If you are a buyer BEWARE.  The main reason these agents/brokers hijack other agent/broker listings is to find you!  Some of them may be new in the business, focus on buyer representation vs listings, or simply not have enough of their own listings.  If they clearly acknowledge that this listing is another agent’s/broker’s, most agent’s have no problem with the practice of having their listings posted on another agent’s  website or blog.  Most of us want the maximum exposure for our listings and are happy to “share” (that is basically what IDX is about) our listings to get them sold faster and at market price, which is the price you and the seller agree to.

If these hijackers act unethically with their own peers, is this someone you want representing you in your purchase, when your money is on the line?

 

Categories
Buying Coconut Grove

Two Coconut Grove Homes Both Listed For $1,699,000

Pool & Patio at 3301 Crystal Ct

I saw two great homes during a Coconut Grove open house.  The one above, listed by Carole Smith and Ken Tate of EWM, is a two-story Old Spanish built in 1924.  It is beautifully restored with a spacious, modern kitchen.

The one below is a modern home,  built in 2008 with wonderful open spaces.  It is listed by Javier Gonzalez with ReMax Advance Realty.  Both homes are approximately the same size, 3,817 and 3,678 square feet respectively, with very nice outdoor entertaining spaces.  Which one would you choose?  The Old Spanish or the modern home?

3801 Crawford Ave