Atlantis, of Palm Beach County, FL Market Stats & Facts for August 2014 Stats and facts about Atlantis, Florida, are out for the month of August 2014.  The report is packed with information about the county and the local city mentioned above. In a nut shell the inventory of single family homes available for sale are at a 2.8 month selling point which is down nearly 53.3%from a year ago. That’s a good sign things are loosening up and people are buying. Click on this LINK, for more graphs and stats. Whether you are buying or selling in this hot market of the County of Palm Beach, FL, choosing the right company will save you money, time and many sleepless nights. I not only have 30 years experience as a Realtor, construction was a passion of mine as well. This alone is worth so much more ... 09/27/2014

The Daily Hot Sheet of Palm Beach Real Estate & FL Realtor News Monday, September 22, 2014 TODAY'S TOP STORIES Fla. Aug. sales up 4.2% year-to-year, prices up 3.4% A market transition from cash investors to primary buyers seems to be on track. Florida Realtors reports higher sales and prices, but U.S. sales slip, says NAR. Read more. State-backed insurer may put early end to storm tax A new 1% reduction in Fla.'s "insurance tax" on all policies will be decided Wed. Two months ago, regulators nixed a similar 1.3% surcharge effective Jan. 1. Read more. FREC announces 2015 real estate scholarships The Florida Real Estate Commission's program for students in a real estate field offers scholarships of $1.5K for undergraduates and $2.5K for graduate students. Read more.   The Bank of Mom-and... 09/22/2014

The Wild of the City of Atlantis, FloridaI live in the City of Atlantis, which is in the heart of Lake Worth, Florida. As I mentioned in past blogs, that I have a bit of a wild life sanctuary that attracts all kinds of Wild Life.  Here is just one of the many examples, that I love sharing. You just never know who will stop by next week....   09/21/2014

Homeowners, A Plan Of Action If You Have Fallen Behind on Your Mortgage Payments? If you would like to stay in your home and have fallen behind on payments due to a short-term financial setback such as an unexpected expense or a temporary loss of income: A Forbearance allows you to suspend payments for a specified time period. At the specified period, the missed payments are either repaid in full or added on as an extension to the term of the loan. A Repayment Plan is similar to forbearance, although the past-due loan amount is spread out over a specified time frame, increasing the existing mortgage payment until the mortgage is brought back up to date. If you would like to stay in your home and have fallen behind on payments due to a long-term financial setback such as a job loss or a... 09/21/2014

Making it to the top 200 nationwide on Active Rain   I'm just wondering if making it to the top 200 of all the members nationwide is a big deal anymore? Currently I rank 197-28-6-1 if you break it down. That would be nationwide-state-county-city.  You now have members reaching 2,000,000 million with many already hitting the million milestone.   The dedication is tremendous if you gauge by the points which in part is the scorecard of what you actually are doing on a daily, weekly, & monthly basis. Putting the points aside I do think the format is user friendly for those that are just now getting started. Along with the encouragement to continue which may be the hardest thing to do in our busy little worlds.   Bottom line is I hope others will take notice and stick with a consistent effo... 09/19/2014

The Daily Hot Sheet of Palm Beach Real Estate & FL Realtor News Monday, September 15, 2014 TODAY'S TOP STORIES Survey: Consumer views on home buying More than two-thirds of Americans (68%) think it's a good time to buy a home - but many won't try because they believe banks will turn down their mortgage request. Read more. More singles than ever: How it affects real estate For the first time since record keeping started in 1976, more than half of all Americans are officially single - divorced, widowed or never married. Read more. 10 ways to be safer on the job Realtors should take steps to be safe: Problems are rare, but you must be prepared. NAR asked Realtors on Facebook to share safety tips. Here are the top 10. Read more.   Trend: More home is squeezed onto a smaller lot Since 1995,... 09/15/2014

City of Atlantis, The Hidden Jewel of Palm Beach County & South Florida       When I tell people I live in the City of Atlantis, most will ask me, where is this, or I never heard of such a place in Palm Beach. Well the city has been here since 1959 and located right in the middle of the county. It is located between Lantana Road and Melaleuca  (North & South), and Congress & Military Trail (East & West). We have three manned gates, our own city hall, police station and two country clubs.       Properties range from condos, villas, single family and estate type properties on over an acre. We have our own park, and the best of all  diverse style construction with no HOA dues.     Access to the Turnpike and I95 are within minutes and the airport is less than 15 minutes away.   If you are l... 09/14/2014

Are We Still Playing The Links?     Some interesting statistics to know: With the state of the economy and retirees struggling to survive their savings, there is a decline of 13% in the last five years.   The amount of rounds of golf being played is down 3.5% in the  last few months Memberships have dropped by over a million since the early 90’s.     Of the 3400 golf courses built in the last ten years are daily fee type memberships.   Paulson & Co, owning some of the most famous golf courses, recently filed Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, due to the economic down turn.   Lawsuits are growing by homeowners over increased fees while amenities are being reduced.   Resort Communities are already reducing golf courses, while focusing on health, education and fitness.   From Miami News & USA Today:   09/14/2014

The Daily Hot Sheet of Palm Beach Real Estate & FL Realtor News Monday, September 8, 2014 TODAY'S TOP STORIES 25% of international investors buy a home in Fla. 2014 Profile of Int'l Home Buyers in Fla.: Foreigners spent $7.97B in Fla. last year. Most (82%) paid cash, and the top area isn't Miami - it's Central Fla. Read more. Fla. condo owners fight forced sales by investors On Sat., Gov. Scott asked regulators to seek help for condo owners hurt by a law that allows an 80% board vote to authorize their condo sale without approval. Read more. ListHub not planning move against online ad firms The Point2 acquisition means ListHub distributes 85% of MLSs' listings, but it says brokers still make the calls; it doesn't decide where listings appear. Read more.   Homeowners frustrated by state... 09/08/2014

    The law that accumulates over & over   This law basically says that achievement is the result of constant and perpetual effort. Everything you have done throughout your life negative or positive multiplies over time.   With a quick illustration on money it works something like this. We all want to be rich, but even the rich unless inherited started out by saving something first. Putting away just $3.00 a day from the age of 20 until you were 65 and receiving a return of 9% over those years you would be a millionaire. You would have saved $43,800 over those 40 years and the law of accumulation would have done the rest.     The same goes for prospecting, but it doesn't happen overnight. You have to prospect for at least 90 days before this LAW kicks in. The key is 90 days because it t... 09/07/2014

The Daily Hot Sheet of Palm Beach Real Estate & FL Realtor News Tuesday, September 2, 2014 TODAY'S TOP STORIES Report: It's cheaper to live in Fla. than Northeast Contrary to some consumer perceptions, it's cheaper to live in Fla. than most Mid-Atlantic and Northeast states, according to a Washington, D.C.-based think tank. Read more. 6 signs that clients are ready to invest Many Realtors seek small investors who own a few rental properties, but it's best to get in on the ground floor – when they're ready to make that first purchase. Read more. Why the upswing in number of single buyers? Single homebuyers made nearly one-third of all 2013 real estate purchases, according to NAR. A survey finds their reasons are the same as those of married buyers. Read more.   La. homeless housing deba... 09/02/2014

The Daily Hot Sheet of Palm Beach Real Estate & FL Realtor News Monday, August 25, 2014 TODAY'S TOP STORIES Sales of U.S. new homes fall in July However, Commerce Dept. adjusted June sales 4% higher than first reported, and the major drop (30.8%) occurred in the Northeast; in the South, sales rose 8.1%. Read more. Existing condos challenged by new condo competition In S. Fla. and elsewhere, condo buyers have a smorgasbord of new properties to consider – but that shiny selection has sometimes hurt existing condo sales. Read more. Chinese drywall victims face new hurdle Va. families say they're waiting for a court to divide toxic drywall settlement money, but the process has been delayed because Fannie Mae suddenly wants a cut. Read more.   Lawsuits challenge U.S. drone, model aircraft r... 08/25/2014

    July Home Sales Over Last Year Are Up 15% & Still Going StrongThis was article written in the Palm Beach Post on Friday 8/22/14. It shows the market improving  year after year from 2010. That is when the market bottomed and was on the upswing. Our  median home price in Palm Beach county is bouncing around $280k-295k for the last couple of months.  We still are on pace doing twice as many sales as Martin & St. Lucie counties to the north of us.     If you are in the market to buy, sell or rent please give us a call to earn your business. Compliments to Kimberly Miller, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer         08/25/2014

Atlantis, of Palm Beach County, FL Market Stats & Facts for July 2014 Stats and facts about Atlantis, Florida, are out for the month of July 2014.  The report is packed with information about the county and the local city mentioned above. In a nut shell the inventory of single family homes available for sale are at a 2.4 month selling point which is down nearly 66.0% from a year ago. That’s a good sign things are loosening up and people are buying. Click on this LINK, for more graphs and stats. Whether you are buying or selling in this hot market of the County of Palm Beach, FL, choosing the right company will save you money, time and many sleepless nights. I not only have 30 years experience as a Realtor, construction was a passion of mine as well. This alone is worth so much more tha... 08/21/2014

Is Golf Still Being Played Like Yesterday?   Some interesting statistics to know: With the state of the economy and retirees struggling to survive their savings, there is a decline of 13% in the last five years. The amount of rounds of golf being played is down 3.5% in the  last few months Memberships have dropped by over a million since the early 90’s. Of the 3400 golf courses built in the last ten years are daily fee type memberships.   Paulson & Co, owning some of the most famous golf courses, recently filed Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, due to the economic down turn. Lawsuits are growing by homeowners over increased fees while amenities are being reduced. Resort Communities are already reducing golf courses, while focusing on health, education and fitness.   08/19/2014

The Daily Hot Sheet of Palm Beach Real Estate & FL Realtor News Monday, August 18, 2014 TODAY'S TOP STORIES Millennial buyers say some marketing doesn't work How do millennials shop for a home? Many at a "Hear It Direct" panel at Florida Realtors conference said they typed, "How do I buy a house?" into Google. Read more. You're going to be serving more immigrants Research Institute for Housing America: Immigrants could account for more than 1/3 of homeowner growth and 1/4 of renter household growth from 2010 to 2020. Read more. Real estate listing video do's and don'ts An effective listing video excites the viewer. It's not enough to show the curb view and all the rooms. A viewer should walk away with an emotional attachment. Read more.   Amerisave on the hook for alleged mortgage sche... 08/18/2014

    We may never be back….A Real Estate Lesson   I wrote in a previous blog, that our Iguanas have not been seen for three years now and were not seen this year as well. Three winters ago a bad cold snap came through Florida, also known as Global Cooling. They could not find Al Gore during this time for some reason either.   Anyway, it effected these boys visiting our back yard next to the canal. This one especially because of its brilliant yellow/orange colors which is somewhat rare.  Hope they return some day, but I fear they may never be back. This could also be said about some of the Real Estate Practices used a short time ago. Look ahead, for this industry is ever evolving and the need to stay up to date never seems to end.    08/17/2014

Time Is Of The Essence Or Is It, When It Comes To Making An Offer?   Have you ever been put into this situation with one of your deals? You put a property up for sale, put the sign out in the yard, MLS, Craig’s List etc. and soon after you get an offer.  Great. The price was low than listed and you are given a written counter- offer. The problem is they don’t respond. In the mean time another offer is made.    Here is where it get’s sticky, the first couple calls back and says we will accept your counter offer. They give hint to bring suit against you knowing the other offer is in place if you don’t sell them the house. What should you do and what options do you have? Here are a couple of things to keep in mind. Most standard contracts have a “time of the essence” clause which gives th... 08/17/2014

City of Atlantis, The Jewel of Palm Beach County   When I tell people I live in the City of Atlantis, most will ask me, where is this, or I never heard of such a place in Palm Beach. Well the city has been here since 1959 and located right in the middle of the county. It is located between Lantana Road and Melaleuca  (North & South), and Congress & Military Trail (East & West). We have three manned gates, our own city hall, police station and two country clubs.   Properties range from condos, villas, single family and estate type properties on over an acre. We have our own park, and the best of all  diverse style construction with no HOA dues. Access to the Turnpike and I95 are within minutes and the airport is less than 15 minutes away. If you are looking to buy, sell, or rent this is... 08/17/2014

    10.5 Ways To Success Starts Today   Focus: If you focus on the opportunity not the negatives of the  item or the people that pull you down you can become successful.   Habits: Form good habits that elevate you, not those that bring you down or keep you at the bottom. This alone will make you successful.   Enjoyment: How much fun do you have doing what you do? Experts say a job is not a job if you like what you’re doing. Learn to take a break and refresh those batteries.   Experience: This you gain every day, through good or bad judgments. The more you plod along the more comfortable you will have with your experiences.  Key here is getting out and starting something, anything.   Balance: This key is to keep your business and personal life in balance. Like the saying goes all work an... 08/17/2014