Florida Real Estate :: New York Style :: Is Tampa the Sixth Borough?

Whenever you have a website with a toll free number and it can easily be found on the Internet, you tend to receive your share of sales calls, lots of them.  It was Saturday afternoon when Jason Sheftell called, sounding just like one of those sales calls.  The voice mail message sounded hurried and a bit anxious.  He said he'd like to have 30 minutes of our time, maybe over lunch, to discuss the current real estate market in our area for an article he was writing for the NY Daily News.  Our first inclination was to pass due to the fact that Sunday is a busy day for us (plus this had to be an advertising stunt) but my marketing manager insisted we at least call him back.  Jason sounded extremely genuine and my marketing manager had already begun to gather information for him - she loves this kind of stuff.  How could I say no?

He explained to us that he was writing a piece for publication on April 27, 2007 on real estate in the Central Florida area, targeting New York City investors, those wanting to relocate, and even retirees.  He said he was mostly interested in uncovering the bargains or the best values. He was only here for the weekend, so he had no time to waste. 

Jason showed up in cut-offs and flip flops with a big smile and lots of questions.  A smart personable guy, asking well thought out questions, Jason was able to get to the meat of what he wanted quickly and efficiently.  After we talked and he made his notes, we armed him with maps, print outs, listings, ideas, and sent him on his way.  His plan was to leave our office in Palm Harbor, travel north to Lansbrook, then north east to Trinity, circle back south east and visit Westchase in Tampa and then head west to the beaches to see Dunedin.  All in a short time span as his plane was leaving to take him back to NYC at dusk.

By email we sent him links to our various websites and pictures of some of our listings.  We may have been the only Tampa Bay Real Estate agent that he spoke to, but this guy covered some ground while he was here as the article covers the I-4 corridor, Daytona Beach, and Orlando as well as the Tampa Bay area.  Jason gathered quite a bit of information in just one weekend and in our opinion did an outstanding job telling the story of Florida Real Estate to our New York friends and soon to be neighbors.

Here's some of the highlights that Jason covered in his article regarding Florida Real Estate.  He starts out by saying, "If you were ever looking to buy in Florida, now is the time", "the building boom in 2005 sent prices high but the softer 2007 market has brought prices down".  He also goes into how Central Florida has lost it's snowbird stereotype for only retirees as low unemployment, great schools, golf courses and famous beaches has changed all that as the area attracts young families and people seeking jobs as well.

Jason says so many New Yorkers have moved here that some news sources are calling Tampa the Sixth Borough of New York.  And why wouldn't they move here?  Our culture, the water, top quality schools, and great home values are some of the reasons he states for this.

We told him not to miss Dunedin and especially take a stroll through the quaint downtown village.  He loved it!  He took two pictures of Dunedin for his story, one of the downtown shops and one of the Pinellas Trail as it meanders through the area. Jason says "Of all the neighborhoods and towns I've seen since covering real estate, this is the prettiest, most affordable location I've encountered. I was sad to leave Dunedin."

Jason closed his article with a snippet of information on Trinity and quote from me. He states, "Trinity has become one of the area's most desirable and affordable living areas. It's the perfect place for a starter home for families or young couples moving down here from the Northeast, says Bob Lipply, a real estate broker with ReMax who has been in the Tampa area for 30 years.  You get a lot of house for the money here and it has a very solid school district."

Jason had his choice of all of our listings to feature in the article.  Here's the two he chose for his New York readers:

Home for Sale in Trinity Florida :: Foxwood Subdivision $374,900

Home for Sale in Westchase :: The Greens Subdivision $619,900

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