Single Family Homes
Pending Sales: 23
Active: 294 Highest price: $6,499,000 Lowest price: $299,900 bank owned foreclosure
Condos – Closed Sales
Pending Sales: 23
Active: 33 Price range: $1,150,000 – $99,000
will be celebrating its 50th birthday the weekend of October 17, 2008. If you attended Palmetto or are a current student, save the date and please update your information so the alumni committee can keep you informed of all of the upcoming events and special dedications.
Miami-Palmetto Senior High School is celebrating its Golden Anniversary and the PTSA is having a special membership drive to commemorate it.
Ranked in the top 100 public schools in the country by Newsweek Magazine, the school is one of the reasons so many families move to Pinecrest. I remember the first time I attended a new student orientation with my now senior student. The principal asked all of the parents who had graduated from Palmetto High to stand up and an extremely large percentage of the people in the auditorium stood up.
I wouldn’t have been surprised at the numbers if we were in a small town, but Miami has a very large and transient population. I was thrilled that so many adults felt the school and Pinecrest community had been such a positive experience in their upbringing that they chose to return and raise their families here.
The school will be holding their open house on Tuesday, September 18 at 7:00 p.m. 
The Village of Pinecrest reduced its millage from approximately 2.4 mills to 1.95 mills by cutting $1,600,000 from its 2007-2008 budget. This was attained by:
At the first public hearing on the budget for 2007-2008, the Village of Pinecrest City Council voted to reinstate the $50,000 that they allocate in the form of $10,000 to each of the schools withing the Village limits.
In the past, this money has been used for landscaping the front of the schools, increasing or updating technology, and expanding Accelerated Reader (AR) programs.
In voting for reinstating the $50,000, which will come from the Village’s reserves, the Village Council acknowledged the importance of the quality schools in bringing families to Pinecrest and increasing property values.
Kuddos to the Village Council! The next budget hearing will be on September 18 at 7:00 p.m.
Well, I received my property tax notice last week and surprise! my property tax bills are not going down significantly (neither did my insurance by the way). I can’t complain as I am one of the lucky homesteaded property owners who defied the “average-time -in-a-house-is 5-7 years-rule” and have been in mine for over 16, so my taxes are low compared to many others in my neighborhood.I live in the Village of Pinecrest, which has been an ardent supporter of the public schools within its boundaries since it incorporated in 1996. Due to the tax reform passed last legislative session, Pinecrest has to rollback their millage rate by 9% and, as a result, cut $50,000 out of its budget that used to go to the schools in the form of $10,000 grants. Obviously this isn’t the only cut they made, parks among other items also got hit, but with three students in the public schools here, it is a cut that will directly affect me.How does this relate to real estate? Easy.
So, while we are all clamoring for property tax cuts and super-sized exemptions to make housing more affordable in the state, let’s remember that cuts will have to be made and we may not be happy with the long term results if those cuts are made in the wrong places.
All we have been hearing for the past several months is how bad the housing market is. High inventory, high foreclosure rate, slow sales. All of that is true, especially in Florida, California, and Nevada where speculation ran high. In 2006, Business Week did a story on absorption rates and came up with the following cute summary of inventory absorption rates. 
In addition to their four categories, I have added two of my own based on Miami-Dade’s inventory levels: 18+ months “ugly”; over 30 months “downright depressing”. I came up with these catagories after learning that as of July, 2007 there were a total of 38,672 condos and single family homes listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) compared to 1,100 closed sales during that same time period. Based on those numbers, we have a 32.9 month supply of condos and single family homes! Now that is depressing, if you are a seller.So why aren’t buyers rejoicing and buying since interest rates are still low?
That being said, since real estate is all about location, location, location, individual local markets can be doing better than others or the county’s in general. Coral Gables currently has a 22.4 month inventory based on closed sales which 
represents 582 homes for sale vs. 26 sold. 22.4 months isn’t great, but its better than 32.9 months, especially since that inventory is for the entire Coral Gables market. The inventory level for homes between $600,00-$899,000 is 18.5 months.Pinecrest has an 18.1 month inventory with 253 homes on the market in July of 2007 vs 14 sold. Again, still depressing if you are a seller but better than the county as a whole.Whether you are a buyer or a seller, find out what the inventory level is in your local market and price range to help assist you in buying or selling your home.
All we have been hearing for the past several months is how bad the housing market is. High inventory, high foreclosure rate, slow sales. All of that is true, especially in Florida, California, and Nevada where speculation ran high. In 2006, Business Week did a story on absorption rates and came up with the following cute summary of inventory absorption rates. In addition to their four categories, I have added two of my own based on Miami-Dade’s inventory levels: 18+ months “ugly”; over 30 months “downright depressing”. I came up with these catagories after learning that as of July, 2007 there were a total of 38,672 condos and single family homes listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) compared to 1,100 closed sales during that same time period. Based on those numbers, we have a 32.9 month supply of condos and single family homes! Now that is depressing, if you are a seller.So why aren’t buyers rejoicing and buying since interest rates are still low?
That being said, since real estate is all about location, location, location, individual local markets can be doing better than others or the county’s in general. Coral Gables currently has a 22.4 month inventory based on closed sales which represents 582 homes for sale vs. 26 sold. 22.4 months isn’t great, but its better than 32.9 months, especially since that inventory is for the entire Coral Gables market. The inventory level for homes between $600,00-$899,000 is 18.5 months.Pinecrest has an 18.1 month inventory with 253 homes on the market in July of 2007 vs 14 sold. Again, still depressing if you are a seller but better than the county as a whole.Whether you are a buyer or a seller, find out what the inventory level is in your local market and price range to help assist you in buying or selling your home.
The Village of Pinecrest has long been know for its excellent schools, but there are a lot of other attributes that makes this community a favorite among long-time residents as well as families relocating to Miami-Dade County.
Once home to the famous Parrot Jungle, Pinecrest has upgraded its parks, including 
the old Parrot Jungle site now known as Pinecrest Gardens.
Admission to the Gardens is free and there are often community events held there such as the Taste of Pinecrest, Chili Cookoff, Art in the Park, and a variety of class offerings.
There is a petting zoo, a splash zone, and tot-lot for the little ones. Adults will enjoy the large shade trees, meandering paths and incredible foliage.
Jennifer Wollmann
[email protected]