Home Sales Shift Emerges" was the headline in the Business section today of the St. Petersburg Times.  Finally something positive!  Well, almost positive.  But, hey, they are trying.  The article goes on to say that while home sale are still declining in the Tampa Bay area, our area is falling much less that half of the state of Florida's average.  How's that?  Well apparently all the short sales that we have in the area are finally moving.  In fact, some Realtors have multiple offers on short sales today.  A short sale is simply the practice of selling a house for less than the outstanding loan balance.  And, the bank (lender) either says yes, no, or here's a counter offer. Lately lenders are signing off more and more on short sale properties rather than…

Safety Harbor is a small town with a big appeal.  It's known for the famous Safety Harbor Spa but there's so much more to Safety Harbor than that.  Waterfront property, gated communities, luxury real estate, and family neighborhoods make up the bulk of residential property in Safety Harbor.  Go downtown and you will find eclectic homes on quaint streets with many large oak trees. Some of these homes were built in the 1920s and 1930s and have been restored; others are prime for restoration.

Surprising statistics are emerging from the MLS in Safety Harbor since the turn of the new year.  With only about 280 homes on the market in Safety Harbor, 30 of them have sold since the beginning of the year and only two of them were short sales.  That in itself is not…

The best way to put yourself in the shoes of one of your sellers is to actually become one.  If I was to take my own good advice, I would NOT sell this property right now - but hold on to it and rent it until the market improves.  But we really don't want to rent it, it's a BRAND NEW HOME.  New homes seem to have much more value than used homes.  Well, at least that's what we thought... We bought the lot long enough ago with plans of building and making a profit and ideally it should have worked out.  But, complications and delays put us far behind schedule and here we are trying to sell the house at cost just to get out from under it.  But, quite frankly, cost just isn't going to do it right now.  The home was on the market all during construction at…

According to Forbes.com's 2008 list of "America's Cleanest Cities", Florida ranks in four of the top ten spots with the Tampa Bay area being #8.  Miami was #1, Jacksonville was #3, and Orlando was #4. 

According to the Forbes article, clean water and clean air result from assertive steps by Florida's cities as well as the built in advantage of weather patterns that blow out dirty smog.  They further noted that nine of the 10 cleanest cities showed population increases between the years 2000 and 2006.

The Sunshine State just may earn the name of the Clean State!

If you are thinking about coming to Florida to check us out, please give us call, we would be happy to show you around. Real Estate in Tampa Bay is still a buyer's market. Come get a great…

The School Choice Program in Pinellas County Florida has been a mixed bag with parents over the last few years. Parents had the opportunity to help choose which school their child will attend.  Schools were narrowed down by zoning into smaller categories and you could choose your schools from that selection. Most students received their first or second choices and all was well but some students did not and were left traveling long distances to and from their assigned school. Plus, since most parents were unsure of what school their child would be accepted at many of them opted to live outside the county to avoid the situation altogether.  This situation had a mild effect on real estate values and caused a lot of families undue stress.

In December of 2007,…

The East Lake area of Palm Harbor and Tarpon Springs remains one of the most popular areas in northern Pinellas County.  In fact, many people from the southern portion of Pinellas County continue to move up this way to take advantage of newer and bigger homes, fantastic schools, and tons of amenities.  Speaking of schools, Brooker Creek and Cypress Woods Elementary schools have both been rated a 10 by the parents of children who attend there, according to GreatSchools.net and East Lake High School has earned a Grade A rating from the State of Florida for 7 straight years in a row!  That's something to brag about!

I have lived in the East Lake area for over 10 years and I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. We have a website dedicated to real estate in…

Probably true in most parts of the country - but especially here in Tampa Bay are desperate home sellers.  Otherwise known as "Motivated Sellers" but these are the sellers that have to sell their homes.  They have been transferred (happens all the time here), laid off, divorced, you name it - whatever lifestyle change that caused this - THEY NEED TO SELL THEIR HOME!  Most times, whatever it takes - they need to find a buyer.

And, quite frankly, they are not afraid to tell you.  Their real estate agents make sure they put those particular comments in the MLS descriptions that homebuyers see when surfing the Internet looking at homes.  Don't just look at the pictures if you are trying to find a good deal!  READ the text - look for clues.

Many potential…

There are many options when selling your home.  One of which is Flat Fee MLS Home selling.  That's what this blog will attempt to explain.  Comparing the options between FSBO, Flat Fee MLS, and Full Service will better equip you to determine which plan is best for you.

So what's this Tampa Bay Flat Fee MLS service all about?

Basically for a small administrative fee paid to a real estate agent, they list your home on the MLS and Realtor.com for a certain amount of time.  Depending on the fee paid, there may be more or less Internet advertising included in the price. You will be required to pay a real estate commission to the agent that brings the buyer, unless of course you sell the home yourself to an individual who is not represented.  You should expect…