I must admit that I may a bit slow on keeping up with Hot Topics, Fads, and Cool Info.....so bear with me here. But, I got an email from a friend with a link to this YOU TUBE Video called "DID YOU KNOW - Shift Happens". I've always been a history buff, and a trivia nut - and the DATA and STATISTICS that this presentation gives just amazed me. When you work through each day - day after day - you tend to loose site of the future. The implications of our information age and how it's daily changes effect our future. This presentation made me really think how quickly the GLOBE changes. Take SIX Minutes of your busy day and watch this..... I think it's awesome. I wanted to share it with you all.       01/29/2009

Recently, while talking with one of my real estate clients, an out of state buyer.....she told me her son was into "motocross" and asked if there was a track anywhere near Gainesville?  I told her about GATORBACK Cycle Park in Alachua, FL, just north of Gainesville. When she told her son about it......he already knew about it because of some of the popular events that happen at GATORBACK Cycle Park each year. In operation for over 25 years, the 100 acre track is host to the MX Winter Olympics, which usually takes place during Thanksgiving week.  You can see the full schedule of events for Gatorback Cycle Park at the Unlimited Sport MX Site. Unlimited Sports MX is the premier website for Motocross Tracks and Racing Events throughout Florida, including Round 5 of the 37th Annual WINTER AM... 01/27/2009

As the Northern US gets beaten up by oblierating snow storms and chilling below zero temperatures, I should hold my tongue and be thankful to live in Gainesville, FL.  However, it is not all sun and fun as you might expect.  We have been contending with below freezing nights, getting in to the 20s and crippling our plants.  I took my dog out in the yard the other morning to notice that my flowing fountain had chunks of something in the second tier, only to discover that the chunks were clusters of ice, and the 1st tier had frozen a bit as well.  Icicles also adorned the top tier - something which I have not seen in Florida for years.The next morning the water in the fountain was frozen solid, so I am going to keep it off until our climate is more tolerable. Today's weather is pretty hos... 01/24/2009

Meet BUTTERBALL and ARIES, the featured pets in the January/February issue of Natural Awakenings Magazine of North Central Florida!  Every 2 months my partner and I advertise a new set of loving animals that want to go home with you.  You can pick up a copy of Natural Awakenings at over 400 locations in Alachua and Marion County, such as Mother Earth Market, Falafel King, La Fiesta, or read the digital issue by clicking the above link to the magazine. The Alachua County Humane Society ACHS is currently raising donations to build a new, larger facility that will better serve the needs of those in the care of ACHS.  A larger facility also means that there are more potential lives to save, so please consider making a donation through their website, e-mail Kirk Eppenstein at keppenstein@ala... 01/14/2009

As most of you are aware, Downpayment assistance programs like Nehemiah and AmeriDream were abolished on October 1st, 2008.  I supported HR 6694 in favor of downpayment assitance programs last year and received an e-mail update today, which reads as follows: "January 12, 2009 We have been informed that a bill to reinstate reformed downpayment assistance will be introduced as early as tomorrow. The bill is expected to be introduced by Congressman Al Green (TX) with bipartisan support. The bill will have the same language as unanimously passed last year by the House Financial Services Committee. We will keep you informed as we continue to support efforts to reinstate downpayment assistance. AmeriDream "Doing things right for America's homebuyers" www.AmeriDream.org"   I found AmeriDream t... 01/14/2009

CONGRATULATIONS to all who closed on a home between January 1st and December 31st, 2008!  I'm certain that your real estate representative advised you file for your homestead exemtion (if you are eligible). The invaluable place that you will visit is the Alachua County Property Appraiser Website.  Here you will find FAQs that cover everything from Save Our Homes PORTABILITY, which allows you to transfer a portion of your SOH benefit from your previous Florida homestead to your new Florida homestead, to questions concerning the "double homestead". You MUST FILE FOR HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION BEFORE MARCH 1ST, so don't delay!  Just get it out of the way so you can clear your plate to deal with the next big project of the year.......taxes. AVAILABLE PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTIONS AND HOW TO QUAL... 01/14/2009

For many sellers, preparing a home for market can be a daunting task filled with a veritable laundry list of things to accomplish.  Most sellers realize that in order to sell their home quickly and for the most money, they need to price the home to sell, make sure it is CLEAN, assure the home has curb appeal and absolutely make certain that the home smells good as well!  I sold a beautiful home in Millhopper Forest and I seriously think that the home's unbelievable fragrance was a strong portion of my customer's falling in love with it! Please enjoy this helpful video, courteousy of UBoxes.  Then call me for your free market analysis and to discuss listing your home in Gainesville, FL! Please visit my website for more tips and resources to help you market your home efficiently! Save 10%... 01/14/2009

Well, our Gainesville-Alachua County Association of Realtors and Gainesville Multiple Listing Service has just had a software overhaul. Panic set in on January 5th, when NO ONE could do maintenance on a listing (price change, showing change, expire, withdraw).  We all were dead in the water for 4 days.   No NEW Listings could be put into the system. All Realtors were REQUIRED to attend a 2 1/2 hour SEMINAR to learn about our new changes and upgrades.  All the changes are to help us use our MLS database as a SUPER TOOL to do our business.  We can now finally search specifically for things like "short sales".  And more information fields have been added for each listing.  Our search on individual fields is easier now!   It's a GOOD THING. The NEW and IMPROVED system went LIVE on Jan 9th, ... 01/13/2009

    One of my favorite treats in Gainesville, FL is Uppercrust Bakery.  I honestly don't think there is anything here that doesn't taste amazing.  My favorite staple here is the rosemary-garlic baguette, which is crunchy and very flavorful.  It is delicious with cream cheese and smoked salmon, tapenade, chevre or simply plain or with butter.  It makes an excellent addition to a pasta based meal or as a sandwich with petit basque, avocado, tomato and red onion.  The rosemary-garlic bread is also available in ficelles and large and small batards, and sometimes as petit rolls.  You need to purchase this, as well as other savory items from Uppercrust early in the day as these are the first to sell.    Rosemary-garlic Baguette:     Also pictured above is the White Bean Mousse, one of severa... 01/08/2009

Right now it might just be the best time ever to send our past clients an anniversary CMA. Some of you might think that in the worst real estate downturn of our lives that might be a lot crazy! Afterall let sleeping dogs lie right. What they don't know won't hurt them will it? Wrong! In Florida, like most areas I'm sure, Property taxes are paid in arrears. That means we pay them after the year is over. So in my neck of the woods, Gainesville Florida, we paid for market all time high premium property taxes in 2007 in the year 2008. That upset a lot of people. Basically after 9 months of the worst decline in real estate values ever, we paid the highest property tax ever. Do you see where I'm going with this? What date will the property appraiser use to determine the assessed value for pr... 12/27/2008

The cover of the wall street journal today reported that French Fianancier Thierry Magon de La Villehouchet apparently took his life after discovering that his investment fund lost 1.5 billion in the Madoff scandal. When I first read this I was tempted to blog something along of the lines of how a real estate investor may take losses from time to time, but he always knows what he has got. Then I thought better of this tragedy and thought the real story is that its only money. Money just buys you things. I dont think money can buy you happiness, but I think that if your life becomes predicated on obtaining huge amounts of money then when and if you lose it perhaps you feel as though life is lost. I don't know because I don't have billions of dollars. Still during the holiday I think its ... 12/23/2008

 Jenn G at 8:03am December 19 hey- I thought about your posting on becoming a landlord the other day. My brother, who is a law student, just won his first case against his former landlord and was awarded TRIPLE his deposit. So I guess you really want to know the legal stuff of becoming a landlord, especially if you are in GA and you are renting to law students. I got this post this morning on facebook. And I thought. Yeah Jenn you are right. Being a Landlord is being a business owner and every good business owner knows you must be good at risk management. At Bosshardt Property Management inc. we actually like renting to Law students and Lawyers. As a professional managment company we know we do things right and by the book and these people are educated enough to know that. For first ti... 12/18/2008

    I started the group here on Active Rain called the Active Rain Foodaholics.  The focus of this group is everything food with a strong encouragement to post profiles of your local restaurants and to become the authority of your local restaurant scene.  I have done several profiles here on my Active Rain blog for the Gainesville, FL area. As we are all aware, Active Rain has extremely high "google juice".  In the food (and other businesses) world, yelp is super high ranking.  If you google the name of a local restaurant, you will most likely see yelp on the first page.  So it may be a long overdue addition to my internet services, but I have joined yelp today.  I posted a link to all of the full restaurant reviews I have done locally and created my profile as Gainesville, FL Realtor.... 12/17/2008

  Whenever I am near Archer Road area, I make sure to stop by Falafel King and stock up on goodies.  My absolute favorite things to get there are, of course, falafel sandwiches, lentil pies, spinach pies and their zatar bread.  I prefer my falafel with the yogurt sauce as oppossed to tahini.  I always purchase a gyro for my boyfriend.  I have tried Gyro Plus and did not feel it compared even remotely with Falafel King's soft, pillow dough and fresh flavors.  Although Gyro Plus has a very very good veggie kibbie sandwich (crushed wheat, mashed potatoes, fresh parsley, homemade spices, mixed and baked. Served with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, parsley). Lentil Pies and Spinach Pies pictured below.  The lentil pies have soft onions and a pleasant cumin flavor.  The lentils are tender, the d... 12/17/2008

        Angela Elliott is a licensed Florida REALTOR® with Century 21 Classic Properties in Gainesville, FL. Please visit my profile for more about me and browse my Gainesville, FL real estate website for additional Alachua County information and listings. Your phone calls are always welcome at (352) 256-7038 as are your e-mails to angela.elliott1@century21.com.  A portion of all my closed sales will be donated to the Alachua Co. Humane Society (View my mission statement). 12/16/2008

Dudley Farm is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  It showcases the evolution of farming techniques and has been owned and operated as a working farm for three generations. In order to reduce the Division of Recreation and Park's statewide expenditures, 19 parks in Florida have been slated to close.  The close is supposed to be temporary.  Dudley Farm is one of the parks that has been slated to close. It is a valuable place to visit and see the operational cane syrup complex, the family's original farmstead with original furnishings, and to witness the park staff performing daily farm chores, raise livestock and raise crops - all in period clothing! SO HOW CAN YOU HELP?  Please visit the Save Dudley Farm website for more information on what you can do to keep this valua... 12/16/2008

    PURCHASE TICKETS now for the Chocolate & Champaign Event for Gainesville's own Dance Alive National Ballet . WHERE:  Gainesville Curtis M. Phillips Center for Performing Arts at 315 Hull Road, Gainesville, FL 32611 WHEN:  Saturday, December 20th, 2008 starting at 8:00 p.m. Tickets cost $75 per person or $600 for a table. Dance to the fabulous sounds of Gosia and Ali.  Gourmet delights provided by Blue Water Bay of Melrose, FL, sparkling champagne, and decadent chocolates.  Exclusive holiday shopping and a fun-filled scavenger hunt! For more information and TICKETS, please call 352-371-2986 Should you wish to make a donation to the Dance Alive National Ballet (DANB), please contact Judy at 352-371-2986. As seen in this recent story about Dance Alive on TV-20 WCJB, funding for the com... 12/14/2008

Here in North Central Florida, we do have a seasonal landscape.  I live in Gainesville, FL and that's about 2 hours north of Orlando.  Yes, we have plenty of "evergreens", but we do have so many seasonal trees and shrubs that love to show off this time of year. It's cold tonight, and a fire is going in my living room fireplace.  The December feeling is here.  We've had a few frosts and freezes, so the grass is all dormant and brown.  I won't have to cut the grass for a few months, but I will just mow over all the leaves....my natural mulching technique. My Sycamore tree is almost naked and all it's leaves have fallen.  My live oaks are dropping their acorns and the squirrels very busy.      My Nandinas are Christmas RED            and the birds are loving them.             My Emperor Sa... 12/13/2008

    The Animal Rescue Site, a partner of Petfinder.com could use a visit from you kind-heared folk.  The sponsors advertise on the site and donate food to abused and neglected animals with each visit.  If you go to the animal rescue site you will see a big purple button to click.  Clicking the button will automatically donate food to these animals in need.    Please bookmark the site and remember to visit often - you can click once a day!  In the spirit of the holidays, take some time to do some good.  It takes just a few seconds to make a difference. There are also a ton of really cool products on the site (everything from clothing, purses, kitchenware, jewelry, water bottles, pet items, throws, etc.).  If you look at the top of the page, above the item description, you will see the c... 12/10/2008

Every home for sale has a statistic called "Days on the Market". Many MLS systems will abbreviate this to DOM.  Throughout this year, so many buyers will ask "how many days has this home been on the market"?  The number of days on the market can be a different market indicator during different real estate market trends.  So I wanted to give my explanation and opinion of the DOM stat.  (Buyers Market or Sellers Market). During a ruthless "sellers' market" and the inventory of homes for sale & "ACTIVE" in our MLS Database was very low, the "Days on Market" stat could cause a Realtor or a Buyer to ask....."Hmmmmm, why has this home been on the market so long?"  My gut reaction might be...."what's wrong with this listing?" In a "sellers' market", if a home is priced competitively, the selle... 12/09/2008