The Wealthy Moving to Lee County

July 5th, 2010

Forbes Magazine has reported that the wealthy are moving to Lee County.
The report states that one of the favorite locations is Lee County, Florida. Well I did my homework. I checked the numbers on the multiple listing. I found an astounding number of homes sold over $1 Million. In Lee County since April 1, 2010 to today there were 103 homes sold over $1 Million. The Lowest price was exactly $1,000,000 and the highest was $3,250,000.
Ok, now are you a believer? We in the Fort Myers area know that there are great deals and It is a tropical paradise.

Low taxes, warm sunshine and deep discounts on real estate. No wonder IRS data shows the wealthiest among us are headed south to Florida.

Flood Insurance and Tax Credit

July 2nd, 2010

WASHINGTON – July 1, 2010 – The deadline for closing on a home and qualifying for the federal homebuyer tax credit ended at midnight, and the National Flood Insurance Programs expired May 31, 2010. But two bills reauthorizing each program received Congressional approval yesterday, though both still need President Obama’s signature to become law, a move expected shortly.

Once the president signs the bills, both extensions become retroactive, meaning the law will not recognize a lapse in coverage for either program.

Homebuyer tax credit

The only thing that changes under the new tax credit bill – The Homebuyer Assistance and Improvement Act (H.R. 5623) – is the deadline for closing on a home. Under the latest version of the tax credit, buyers had to secure a signed contract by April 30, 2010, and close by June 30, 2010. The bill extends the closing deadline to Sept. 30, 2010.

Short sales, however, can take considerably longer than two months to close. And an onslaught of buyers trying to beat the June 30 deadline proved challenging to Realtors, title companies and lawyers trying to beat the clock.

The National Association of Realtors lobbied heavily to get the tax credit extended, but Congress took the issue down to the wire before eventually approving the change.

National Flood Insurance Program

The federal flood insurance program has general support among lawmakers, but they continue to disagree on the details. As a result, it has expired three times this year, only to be reauthorized after the fact by Congress. Each extension is considered a short-term fix so lawmakers have time to consider a long-term solution.

Officially, NFIP is still on hiatus until the president signs the bill, HR 5569, into law; but once that happens, it’s official again back to May 31, 2010.

© 2010 Florida Realtors®

Congress’ Flood Insurance Lapse Strands Residents, Home Sales

June 28th, 2010

It is just amazing.  This congress seems to be oblivious to the effects of their inaction to approve The National Flood Insurance Program Florida is the epicenter of economic downturn. We no sooner seem to be coming thru this with hurricane season at our doorstep and no one can get flood insurance. WOW!  How in the world could they have adjourned without putting this as a top priority?

Anyone needing a mortgage in a flood zone must have flood insurance or no mortgage,
We have loads of customers stuck in limbo; sellers trying to sell and buyers trying to buy and move in.
With hurricane season upon us, it could not be a worse time of year for Floridians to be without flood insurance.

The National Association of Realtors estimates that for each day Congress delays, 1,400 sales are tied up. In Florida, it’s affecting about 175 deals a day.

The flood insurance program expired May 31. Since then, some lenders have been willing to accept binders, or promises, to write flood insurance policies as soon as Congress reauthorizes the program. But others are refusing to allow deals to go through without insurance.

U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton, who voted to reauthorize the program, said Congress’ delay has brought an already weak real estate market to a “total standstill.”

“To say that Florida’s economy is in a fragile state would be an understatement,” he said. “In this uniquely perilous economy, if someone is prepared to buy a new home, they should be able to buy it.”

The halt in flood insurance isn’t affecting only homebuyers.

People living in flood zones whose insurance has expired also are beginning to panic.

It is a wonder how Congress could allow so many citizens to be at risk.

The National Flood Insurance Program was jammed into a controversial $110 billion jobs package designed to extend unemployment benefits. House members stripped the insurance provision into a separate bill and passed it this week. But senators, who shot down the jobs bill, left for the weekend without taking up the insurance bill.

Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty has called Congress’ delay “irresponsible.” So do I.

Write your congressman.

Getting Your Home Ready to Sell

June 23rd, 2010

How do you get a buyer interested in purchasing your house in this tough market? Impression is the keyword. You just need to get your house ready to sell by doing some preparation. Get inspected by a professional if you want to put a little effort for maximum results, or if you don’t want to spend much money by paying professional you can do it by yourself but it won’t have the same impact for a buyer.

 These are the steps for getting your house ready to sell to a buyer.

Beautify your exterior!

The goal is to make your exterior look pretty and fresh to impress your buyer. Just to inform you that the exterior becomes the first impression of your house. There are two sensory areas of a buyer you must impress. Those are eyes and nose. The garden must be neat and must look pretty and fresh. The steps you can do are:

-              Get the grass, trees, flowers, and plants tidy and fresh by mowing and watering it

-              Clean up the curb and entering path, plant flowers and lay down fresh mulch

-              Freshen up the smells by put scented potpourri.

-              Clean up all of windows and entering doors.

-              Get rid of equipment and put out of sight.

-              Paint the walls if necessary.

Make the Interior Cozy

Now the exterior has that welcoming feel  do some simple things to get the coziness of your interior. The aim is to make a buyer feel like home when entering your house. These are the steps:

-              Clean up the tile floors; scrub it if there are some bad spots.

-              Polish furniture and pack excess pictures and collections.

-              Shampoo carpets .

-              Get your furniture well placed and get rid of unnecessary pieces.

-              Clean out closets and organize

-              Clean the garage and attic

-              Get the windows opened and clean, it lets the light in.

-              If you have pets, bath them.

-              Put some fresh fragrance in air conditioner.

Repairing and Replacing

Some Repairing and replacement is necessary to do, if there are some broken furniture, equipment, or appliances remove or fix them.

-              broken or missing doors and handles

-              cabinet handles

-              ceilings with old stains or cracks.(paint and caulk)

-              ventilation filters must be clean

-              broken tiles in bathroom and kitchen

-              faucets shouldn’t leak

-              wallpaper (remove if dated, stained); then paint

-              some furniture (too much-remove; broken-remove)

Get your friends’ opinion or a home stager

Assume some friends like a buyer, and get some advice and suggestion to make your house get more ready to sell.

Going Green

June 18th, 2010

Energy is on the front page of the news a lot this past year or so. We are either talking about paying an incredible price at the pump or the Gulf Disaster spoiling the Louisiana shoreline and the eco systems.

My lease was up on my SUV and I needed to car shop. That is a very painful experience. I checked other car dealerships. Over the last decade I have driven only a Lexus because of the unmatched customer service, quality of the vehicle and the features that have made the Lexus a Lexus. The folks at Scanlon Lexus are the very best. The sales team, management, credit manager and service have always been the most professional, friendly and easy to deal with I have ever seen.

This year it just made sense to go for the hybrid. It is time to do more for our environment and go green. The HS250 is a great car and I get 29 miles per gallon. Now that is exciting! It’s not only good for the environment; it is great for the pocket book. I had the windows tinted to save on AC and it does.

Now we have to get greener in our homes. We need to turn down the hot water temp in the tank and blanket wrap it, turn up the temp. in the house. It is summer time; wear less and run the ceiling fan when you are in the room. Turn it off if you are leaving. Trim and hour off the pool pump. Make sure any windows with eastern or western exposure need tinting and blinds. With these small things you can save a ton of kilowatts.  One more thing, those light bulbs that save energy. Just do it.

Now how hard is that? The greening of America. Let’s help.

Word on The Street

May 28th, 2010

Prices are up and continuing to climb. SW Florida was the epicenter of the overbuilding investor debacle. We were the first to send prices out of sight. We were the first to fall and we are the first to start the recovery.
For starters let’s talk about 30 homes listed over one million dollars that have closed in the past 3 months in Lee county. They are evenly divided between Cape Coral, Fort Myers, Bonita and Sanibel. We have had record number of sales this year because pricing is so wonderful. That means the economy is improving and we are on our way back.

Open House Touring

May 8th, 2010

With the computer taking over our buyer base searching for books, electronics and real estate it’s challenge to capture the customer. Real Estate cannot be returned if not what you viewed on the web page. The buyer still needs to use all their senses to decide they like a home. All these things go into the decision to buy: location, neighbors, color, size, layout, condition, smell, PRICE. Hence someone coming to an open house gets to experience the home. This will give you the opportunity to develop a relationship with a buyer and the buyer find a professional they want to work with.
I think we have less attendance at open houses but it is still the opportunity to meet. After all that is what we do; develop relationships.

Ripping off Cape Coral?

May 5th, 2010

Not completing the audit because the contractor refuses to release payroll records is not right! Think their costs were excessive? Someone made and obscene amount of money at the expense of the citizens. The job of council is to find out why and how this happened. How can you have half an audit? MWH needs to turn over these records. What are they hiding? I know; huge profits and price fixing. Prove me wrong, please. History should not repeat itself. Knowledge is the key. We need a city manager that can control the overcharging our citizens. Look at the $110 million building turned down by the citizens. It was well known and talked about by commercial builders in town that they could build that building for $45 million. How did it get to a vote? Why did the city let it get that far? If we the public get it, why don’t the people running our government get it? Council needs to think with common sense. They need to put people in place that watch the spending and bills.
Cape Coral utilities expansion shouldn’t be that hard. We need answers. I have stated for years that the amount of money charged for utilities is ridiculous. You don’t have to be an accountant. THINK about it; Dig a trench 80’ long in front of a standard Cape Coral lot. Bury three pipes. Hook them to the neighbor and pay a portion of the pumping station. How on earth can that possibly cost $26,000 to a home owner? It just doesn’t add up.
Look at Lee County over paying for the newly acquired land in Lehigh by 2/3. OUCH! It’s our tax money. How does this happen. Fix it! Hazel McCallion (Mayor) of that wonderful city in Ontario, Mississauga. She has run her very large city for over 30 years in the black with reserves. Check her out on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fY79KbCptTo. Go to Canada and take her too lunch, dinner or whatever it takes to learn and get ideas for our beautiful city to be a better more fiscally responsible Cape Coral.

Housing Tax Credit Over

May 4th, 2010

This was a very big deal. Loads of closings the last day of the month and what a wind fall for first time buyers. They were giddy with excitement. This wasn’t chump change. It was up to $8000!
There are still significant tax credits for air conditioners, etc. If you can use it.

Tax Credits For Your Home

February 25th, 2010
Solar water heater mounted on roof

Tax Credits for Solar Water Heaters

A federal tax credit makes energy-efficient solar water heaters a more affordable and sustainable option for many homeowners. Read

The federal energy tax credit is based on 30% of the cost of

Tax Credits for Replacing Heating and Cooling Systems

Upgrading to an energy-efficient heating and cooling system can save hundreds on your utility bills and earn you a tax credit worth as much as $1,500. Read

House with a metal roof

Tax Credits for Replacing Your Roof

Replacing your roof with a qualifying energy-efficient metal or asphalt roof can cut your cooling bill and earn you a $1,500 tax credit. Read

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Tax Credits for Adding or Replacing Insulation

A federal tax credit makes adding insulation an even cheaper way to improve your home’s energy efficiency and cut your heating and cooling bills. Read

Kitchen with many windows

Tax Credits for Replacing Windows, Doors, and Skylights

If money seems to be escaping through drafty windows, doors, and skylights, this federal tax credit might make energy-efficient replacements more affordable. Read

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© Copyright 2010 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®