The following statistics were taken from the Florida Association of Realtors, based on MLS sales levels from Florida’s Realtor boards and associations. (*Statistics are based on single-family homes sales) 

With home prices decreasing, it is now more important than ever to be sure you are working with the best real estate agent to sell your home. 

Be sure to sell your home with an expert!  If you are looking to list your home now or in the future, by working with an expert agent you will sell your home for the highest possible price.  Selling a home in today’s market does no have to be so intimidating. Be sure to choose the right agent, who will be with you every step of the way.

At expertrealty.com, you can connect yourself with the greatest Realtors in South Florida, who are all experts in their neighborhoods.

Skywater, a company based in Fort Lauderdale, offers this unique experience to buyers searching for high-end estates in the Miami-Dade and Broward County area.  These buyers are able to take a bird’s-eye view of homes and lots for sale, anywhere from the coast, to the everglades’ edge.

What are the advantages?  See the home for all that it is!  Get a better view of how much space the home has, see what is around the house in other properties you would not be able to access by foot, or even spot roofing problems!

The average cost of one flight runs about $1,000, and includes luxurious leather interior, and an air conditioned cabin.  Not recommended for home buyers on a budget!

This grant allows the money to be used in five ways.  This includes the purchase and rehabilitation of foreclosed homes.  The establishment of financing mechanisms for the purchase and development of foreclosed and residential properties is another option.  The others include the demolition of impaired structures, the redevelopment of vacant and demolished properties, and the creation of a land bank.  A land bank is a public authority that is established to proficiently hold, manage, and develop tax-foreclosed property.

The city already offers rehab and purchase assistance programs for residents and although foreclosures are occurring, most houses are not in bad condition.  This means that the option for providing funds for demolition of impaired structures is not relevant for Coral Springs.

As good as over $3 million in funds sounds, the grant is not being welcomed with open arms.  The grant would put the city in the housing business.  Some of the City Commission members are afraid of what will happen when they have spent that money.  Eventually, if buyers are not found for these properties, the city would have to pay to maintain them until they are purchased.  The basis of the worry is the market; you cannot truly predict when the market will turn around.  Some commission members, like City Manager Mike Levinson and Vice Mayor Vince Boccard, worry that it may be years.  Other members, like Commissioner Roy Gold are uncertain about the right course.  However, Mayor Scott Brooks is confident that the market will turn around before the city has to spend too much money on maintaining the homes.

The pros and cons need to be weighed.  Although the program puts the city at some risk, risk is often necessary if changes and progress are to be made.  If you live in Coral Springs, be sure to give your input.

The city of Plantation has received $2 million to purchase what they can of the 280 foreclosed properties in the city.   The money is coming in the form of a federal grant, as a result of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act that was passed by Congress this past July.    But owning a home in Plantation that is undergoing foreclosure does not guarantee that you will receive assistance, as with the $2 million there is clearly not enough to spread around to the vast number of homes.

The city, as with other areas across the nation, will be very select and strict with their qualification process.  Required by federal regulations, 25% must be used only for very low income housing, 65% on low to moderate, and 10% is allowed to be allocated to administrative costs.

For those familiar with Plantation real estate, the prices for most homes in the area are far too high to be eligible for assistance.  With that said, the city will be focusing mainly on condos in the area, which actually represent about 2/3 of properties in Plantation undergoin foreclosure. 

Once the city’s plan has been approved for use of their funds, they will have 18 months to use up the funds from the grant. With the next few months the city will have their proposition and plan passed through to be approved, after which more information will come available for homeowners to find out more about qualifying.

The home-price index for South Florida fell 28.2 percent from 2007, which is better than June’s 30.5 percent drop. This index includes Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties.

Standard & Poors, the company that compiles this index,says that this slight improvement is nothing to phone home about. “While some cities did show some marginal improvement over last month’s data, there is still very little evidence of any particular region experiencing an absolute turnaround,” Chairman of S&P’s Index Committee, David Blitzer, said.

Issues with the housing market is at the center of the financial market meltdown we’ve been experiencing lately. Wall Street is a roller coaster and buyers or potential buyers don’t have as much confidence in America’s economy as they once did. The financial institutions that are still open are taking precautions to make sure that they stay afloat.

“Banks will probably stiffen lending rules even more in coming months to limit losses, indicating residential real estate will keep contracting and consumer spending will falter,” the Herald said.

In a nutshell, housing prices will continue to decline. According to the Herald, prices fell 0.5 percent in June and an additional 0.9 percent in July. Although we have experienced a slight improvement in the home pricing deficit, there is still a loss.

For those who can still afford to buy in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties, this is definitely good news.

Kurtz is suing the developer, Duo Hallandale, and its title agent, former Hollywood Commissioner Keith Wasserstrom.  The lawsuit claims that Wasserstrom illegally tampered with the cash deposit in an escrow account controlled by his law firm and his now dissolved Celebrity Title Co.

Wasserstrom is not a stranger to controversy, last year he was convicted on public corruption charges from a Hollywood sludge contract.  The Broward State Attorney’s Office has been in the process of investigating the title company and developer for $166,000 in undisclosed fees that was paid to Wasserstrom.

According to the attorney for Duo Hallandale, Kurtz has no case.  He makes reference to hundreds of other similar cases he is currently involved in, which involve buyers trying to find a loophole to get out of purchases made before the housing crisis.  Kurtz argues that he would have moved into the condo if it had not been for the loss of the ocean view.  Furthermore, experts claim that Kurtz should have received interest payments for his down payment, and other accounting information, but he has not.

Whichever way this lawsuit pans out, at least we can walk away with a lesson.  Before purchasing an oceanfront condo, be sure to ask how permanent that ocean view is!

The home sold to David L. Spiller for $2.35 million last month. In August of 2006, Marino listed the home for $4.65 million, and soon thereafter dropped it to $3.5. Marino and his wife Claire then auctioned the estate, with no takers willing to meet the minimum price requested.

The Marinos had originally planned to relocate to Parkland from their $13.5 million home in prestigious Windmill Ranch Estates in Weston, but plans changed. The Weston mansion, with 19,496 square feet, 10 bedrooms, 12.5 baths, 2 guest houses, on 4.3 acres of land, has also spent some hard time on the market. Originally asking $15.9 million, the selling price has continued a steady decline since its listing in 2006.

]]> http://blog.expertrealty.com/dan-marino%e2%80%99s-takes-600000-loss-on-florida-mansion/feed 0 http://blog.expertrealty.com/ill-beat-you-to-prove-im-not-a-wuss http://blog.expertrealty.com/ill-beat-you-to-prove-im-not-a-wuss#comments Sun, 21 Sep 2008 19:00:11 +0000 Jen http://blog.expertrealty.com/?p=385 After now 21-year-old, Billy Ammons helped his friends beat up three homeless men back in 2006 on the street, he quickly grabbed a paintball gun ready for round two and three to prove to his friends that “he was not a wuss.” Him and two of his other “cool” friends face the possibility of life in prison if convicted for the ruthless attacks.

Ammons’ two other friends, residents of Plantation, made a not-guilty plea on first degree counts of attempted murder in the January 2006 attacks. Ammons, resident of Ft. Lauderdale, made a deal with prosecutors. He was willing to give his testimony  in exchange for 10-20 years in prison. Ammons has had encounters with police before, and has lied to them on previous occassions.

Norris Gaynor, one of the homeless men in the beating, died from his injuries. One of Ammons’ friends took a baseball bat to his head during one of the encounters. Another grabbed a rake handle.

One of the other homeless men, Raymond Perez, was hit with a plastic sword by Ammons. He was hospitalized along with the third homeless man, Jacques Pierre.

Defense says that the gentlemen were out to hassel with the homeless, but not kill them.

Ammons will be sentenced on September 24, 2006.  Yeah, real cool, Dude.

Don’t forget that your applications for the free money to beautify landscaping around your community are due June 8 at noon!

Broward Beautiful Community Grants Program will give you anywhere from $1500 to $10,000 for a project providing it’s on public property or common areas visible to the general public.

You can spruce up a small park, right of way or entranceway to your community, in any community in Davie, Cooper City, Weston, wherever, because the grant is countywide.

Gated communities have a bit of a speedbump because they can only apply for projects outside the gates, however, it is still a worthwhile effort because many gated communities have more than one entrance and many borders.

There are rules. You can only use the money for plants, sod and mulch. And out of the set of plants allowed, at least half have to be Florida native plants.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has defined native as “a species that occurred in Florida at the time of European contact or 1500” … that grow naturally in our area, without our interference.

They include arrowroot, coontie and wild lime, and can attract butterflies as well as people. For a list click here.

And it all has to meet code.

Town meetings with local legislators lead many a frustrated and confused resident in Dade and Broward County to the conclusion that Tallahassee can only agree on one thing: taxes need reform.

But who benefits (right now longtime homeowners – aided by Save Our Homes – and first-time buyers) and how the process will be set up is still seemingly so out of their reach to develop.

So far, the only “plan” has been called “unconstitutional,” and smacks of side-stepping and stalemates.

I give to you a quote from the Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan educational organization specializing in tax research, based in Washington, D.C. “The proper policy would be to cut taxes equally for all types of property, and not just those owned by individuals that have the most political influence.”

Does this sound a tad idealistic?

Sounds like it’ll be a long haul folks, so take advantage.

And if the Governor’s plan to double the Homestead Exemption (to $50,000) wins, due to the complicated explanations given by legislators to voters who decide they just don’t get it, and vote “Christ Plan,” then it’s off to the races for you!!

So I urge you, first-timers, to consider looking into some of these awesome condos and homes in South Florida.

At the risk of sounding cliché, “it’s never been a better time to buy.”