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Why Use A Florida REALTOR?

July 27, 2010 By Lisa Leave a Comment
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Why Use a Florida Realtor?

Thinking about selling your Florida home?  While some Florida sellers try and sell their homes on their own, most fail.  The reasons are simple.  First, homeowners make the mistake of pricing their homes too high. That strategy may have worked in a seller’s market; it does not work for today’s buyer market conditions.  With so much inventory on the market for buyers to choose from and competition from short sales and foreclosures, owners must price their properties competitively or the property won’t sell.  The second reason For Sale By Owners fail is their homes don’t get enough exposure to a maximum pool of buyers.  Buyers may come from other states and other countries such as Canada, Europe or even China. You could price your home right, and it still will not sell because no one knows it’s available.  If you want to get your home sold in today’s competitive market for top dollar, it is recommended that you list your home with a Florida Realtor.  Only a Florida Realtor can price your home right, and market it to a large selection of buyers.

Marketing Plan

A Florida real estate agent will design a custom marketing plan for your home. This will include a variety of marketing options such as:

·    Local MLS
·    Internet
·    Newspapers
·    Magazines
·    Open Houses
·    Broker Open Houses
·    Signage
·    Brochures and Flyers
·    Virtual Tour

Most buyers start their home search on the Internet.  Realtors advertise their listings on numerous Internet websites.  Your Realtor will feature your home so that buyers can contact them for showings.  Only Realtors have access to advertising on the local MLS.  This is one of the most important places your agent will advertise your property because this is where other brokers and agents look for properties for their clients.  So your Realtor is essentially marketing your home to every broker in your area and outside your area as well.  Chances are the buyer will come from another agent who searched the MLS and sent their buyer information on your property.

Negotiating Contract Contingencies and Closing

Negotiating your contract is important.  Each party is responsible for meeting contract contingencies. Your Realtor will help you with the negotiations and remind you of important dates. The Realtor will also coordinate with the buyer to make sure they have been approved for financing if they are obtaining a loan and coordinate with the title and closing agent to make sure everything closes smoothly.  There are frequently unforeseen issues that come up during the escrow period that a skilled and experienced Realtor can help you handle. The Realtor is an expert at negotiating and handling buyer objections to help make sure your deal closes so you can move on to something else in your life.  The Realtor can also help you find another property to rent or buy and refer you to a moving service.

While you can try and sell your home on your own, using the services of a professional Realtor makes more sense in this tough market. You will save time and stress, and your home will sell quicker and for more money.

Filed Under: Articles, News, Real Estate Articles

Investing in Florida Real Estate

July 20, 2010 By Lisa Leave a Comment

Investing in Florida Rental Property

Foreign investors have been investing in Florida real estate quite heavily these days because there are so many good investment opportunities. Chinese investors, Canadians and other foreign nationals have been taking advantage of the affordable rental properties and vacation home opportunities Florida has to offer.  Florida real estate is some of the most desirable real estate in the world so it is no surprise that foreigners, retirees, snow birds and tourists want to enjoy Florida’s gorgeous beaches, participate in the numerous water sports, play golf at the world class championship golf courses, enjoy fine dining, do upscale shopping and visit tourists attractions such as Disney World.

Why Invest?

Here are just some of the benefits of owning investment real estate in Florida:

  • Investment property gives you a long-term asset that appreciates in value so you can build equity and long term wealth.
  • Investing in Florida real estate is a stable investment as opposed to investing in a volatile stock market.
  • You receive income from renting out your property.  There are many choices of properties ranging from single-family to multi-family dwellings, apartment buildings and other commercial real estate opportunities.
  • Owning rental properties gives you the flexibility of doing whatever you want with the property while enjoying the use of it as well.  If you want to use the property as a vacation home part of the year, you can rent it out for rest of the year or seasonally.  There is a high demand for seasonal rentals especially properties located in golf communities, retirement communities and near the ocean. Seasonal rentals bring a higher amount of money, but for a shorter term.
  • Foreign investors have the opportunity to buy more for their money than if they invest in their own country.


Working with a local Realtor is the best way to locate rental property or vacation homes that meet your criteria. Your Realtor can help you prepare and negotiate your offer, keep track of contract contingency deadlines, refer you to vendors and co-ordinate your closing.

U.S Income Taxes

Foreign nationals are subject to paying U.S. income taxes on your rental income.  There is a flat rate tax of 30% on all sources of U.S. income. However, if your income is considered “effectively connected income” (income connected to a U.S. business or trade) then after deductions, you only pay a graduated tax the same as resident aliens and U.S. citizens.

Foreign investors are also required to pay capital gains taxes at the time you sell your investment property if you receive a gain.  The U.S. government also requires all closing agents withhold taxes in the amount of 10% of the sale proceeds when the sale is over $300,000, even if there is no gain under the FIRPTA tax laws. There is an exemption to the withholding taxes if your buyer is purchasing your property as their primary residence. There are also inheritance taxes due at the time of your death if you own U.S. real estate. To avoid double taxes, there are double tax treaty exemptions that you should discuss with your tax advisor or attorney.

Right now is definitely a good time for foreign investors to invest in Florida rental properties and luxury vacation homes because prices are so affordable in all areas and there is a wide variety of properties to choose from.  Also, your money buys you more than in your own country.  If you are looking for a safe and long term investment opportunity, purchasing Florida real estate is a smart choice.

Filed Under: Articles, Real Estate Articles

Is The Oil Spill Affecting Florida Beaches?

June 17, 2010 By Lisa Leave a Comment

Not where I live! Here in Dunedin and the surrounding areas, the beaches are still pristine and beautiful, the birds not soaked in oil. Thank goodness. I was prepared to rush to the beach at the first sign of oil to volunteer my services to help preserve the beach and the wildlife, and I still will, if it comes to that. The panhandle may not be so lucky, but that remains to be seen.

The whole thing just infuriates me. With all of the technology we have for more environment friendly forms of energy, is oil really this necessary? I don’t think so.  We have many alternatives for producing energy and fuel that we could realistically use, such as electric cars, solar panels, and hydrogen fuels. The oil racket just infuriates me.

If we must have oil, could we at least keep it off the boats and therefore out of our oceans? Not drill offshore? I know, I know, in a perfect world. Well, in MY perfect world anyway. Call me a treehugger if you must…..lol… but I just hate seeing anything that hurts our environment or our wildlife more than we already have.

For now, this area is still our own little paradise, and we have no plans to leave it.

Filed Under: Articles, News, Real Estate Articles

Summer in Dunedin, Florida

April 5, 2010 By Lisa Leave a Comment
dolphins

Summer is here! Summer is here! Well, summer may not have arrived yet in most parts of the country, but it has here in Florida! I have the tan and sunburned nose to prove it. We Floridians are more than ready for the warm weather after our unusually cold winter, that’s for sure.

The hardest part about living in Dunedin, Florida (for me, anyway) is that I have a really hard time staying inside once the warm weather hits. Since the warm weather is here the majority of the year, I guess it’s a good thing that I do what I do! At least being a Realtor allows me a lot of outdoor time. I honestly don’t know how people work regular office jobs here. Although my outdoor time usually consists of showing properties and driving around, occasionally I get to enjoy a different recreational activity, and there’s always something to do in Dunedin.

I had some downtime over the Easter holiday weekend, and I made good use of it. I went kayaking with my youngest son, watched the dolphins play by the seawall, and spent Easter day by the pool with my family. (Hence the tan and sunburned nose! lol ). The wildlife is appreciating the warmer weather too. The osprey are busily building their nests, the egrets are eager to say hello, and the dolphins are playing in the warmer ocean water.

When I get tired of being in the water (ha ha! Like that ever happens), there are always lots of other community activities in Dunedin, Florida. For instance, the month of April starts Friday Night Films in the Park held at Pioneer Park.  The movies are outdoors, free, and start at 8pm every Friday night. Enjoy some old classics such as King Kong, Wuthering Heights, and Breakfast at Tiffany’s while you enjoy the cool evening air. They usually have some light snacks available there to purchase or you can bring your own. I love free movie night. It’s a great place to enjoy some quality time with my husband or some friends.

In May, we celebrate Cinco De Mayo by having a street party. Head downtown for music, free dance lessons, and tons of Mexican cuisine. The best part about the street celebrations in Dunedin, is that just about everyone can walk home. It’s a small enough community that no matter where you live, it shouldn’t be more than a 15-20 minute walk home. Of course, that time is subject to change depending on the amount of celebrating you’ve been doing..lol.

There are many other events held year round here in Dunedin, Florida. I would never be able to list them all. If you’re interested in seeing all the goings on, you can find a complete calendar of events on the city of Dunedin website at www.dunedingov.com. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend, and I’ll talk to you soon!

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The Buying Process

March 5, 2010 By Lisa Leave a Comment

I was taking a class down at the Pinellas Realtor Organization recently and our instructor told us a very interesting story. He was involved in a consumer study a few weeks back where they brought some people in and asked them questions about the Real Estate process. When asked the question, “What does a REALTOR do?”, not one person knew the answer! There were some mumblings about how they show you houses, which is true, but that is only a very small part of what a REALTOR does.

When you start looking for a new home, what most people do is get in their car on a Saturday and drive around the areas they like looking for “For Sale” signs. When you see something you like, you get out, look around a little, and if you’re still interested, you call the agents’ number on the sign in the front yard to schedule a showing. In the course of a day, you may have anywhere from 2-10 different agents lined up to show you properties. And you’re trying to keep track of who is showing you what property and so on and so on. I did this too before I became a REALTOR. And once you find something you like, what do you do from there? I had no idea. What I didn’t know is that YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO ALL THIS WORK YOURSELF!

Just like if you were selling a property, you only need ONE agent to help you with the buying process of purchasing a new home, preferably a licensed REALTOR. Using more than one can actually cause problems for you, especially if you sign any type of agreement with an agent. I don’t ask buyers to sign any kind of agreement. The way I see it, if I’m doing everything I can for my buyers to find them a new home, they will stay loyal to me. If they go to another agent, it’s because I’m not doing my job. I also wouldn’t want to force anyone to work with me who didn’t want to, whatever the reason.

All real estate agents are not the same, and they are not all REALTORS. To be properly called a REALTOR, a licensee must be a member of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS. REALTORS are committed to dealing honestly with all members of a transaction and maintain a strict code of ethics and a higher level of knowledge of the process of buying and selling real estate.

Once you find someone you like, your REALTOR will:

1.) Help you determine what you can afford by getting some basic information from you and refering you to lenders who are best qualified to help you. It’s always good to be pre-approved before you start your home search. This way, you know what you can afford, and the seller knows you won’t have any snags come up when you purchase the property. It also saves everyone time and allows you to move fast when you find that perfect property.

2.)Your REALTOR has access to many databases and resources to help you in your search for your perfect new home. If the property is listed, and at times even if it’s not being marketed yet, your agent will find it.

3.)Your REALTOR can help you weed out properties you wouldn’t be interested in by providing information about each property before you use up all of your gas driving around. REALTORS have access to loads of informational resources that can provide you with information about the communities, the schools, zoning, churches, etc.

4.)Your REALTOR will do all of the grunt work for you. He/she will call the listing agents of the properties you’d like to see and arrange showing times according to YOUR schedule. They will also find out from the listing agent any pertenant information you may need to know about the property and then show you the property.

5.)Once you find the property you want to make an offer on, your REALTOR will prepare all of the paperwork and take care of any negotiation factors including price, anything included or excluded from the sale, financing, terms, date of possession and much more. They will take care of getting the offer to the sellers’ agent.

6.) Your REALTOR can advise you what inspections and investigations are required before purchasing the property,and they can recommend qualified professionals to do these for you and provide you with written reports within the timeline mentioned on the purchase contract.

7.)Your REALTOR will obtain any disclosures about the property from the sellers’ agent.

8.)Your REALTOR will help you understand and guide you through the closing process, making sure everything goes smoothly. They will be there at the closing with you and will be smiling along with you when you get handed the keys to your new home.

These are many of the things your REALTOR will do for you in a nutshell. I hope this article has helped you, the buyer, understand the process of working with a REALTOR a little better. Happy house hunting!

Filed Under: Articles, Real Estate Articles

One Link for all Community Information-including Crime Stats

February 18, 2010 By Lisa Leave a Comment
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Recently I was talking to my mom who lives out of state. She’s been toying with the idea of buying a second home or retirement home in this area of Florida so that when she and my stepdad come to visit, or retire, they’ll have a place here already. With the market the way it is, this is a great time to buy.

I’ve set her up in Listingbook.com, which is a program I like to use for all of my clients. She really likes it, but she had one complaint. Under the “community information” there were no statistics on crime in the area.  She told me that that information is a must for her. I can totally understand her position. Not being from this area, or familiar with it, she wouldn’t want to inadvertently purchase a property in an unsafe area.

I found a very informative site where you can search by city and get all kinds of information, including crime statistics.  Just click on this link:  City Stats.  I think this will give everyone all of the statistics they need.

Filed Under: Articles
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