Florida Homes and Condos for Sale: January 2011

Your Second Home in Florida …

With Snow and cold up north, the mind turns to Florida and your second home…  

I learned a long time ago (OK, about eight years ago)  that when the weather in the northeast gets cold and the snows start coming folks have a tendency to get “orange juice in their veins.”

Actually I coined the phrase after my first winter in real estate in Brevard County Florida.  I realized so many of the folks I was showing houses to were snowbirds who had come for a visit and “just had to buy a home here.”

Very few purchased but I learned about the effects of the orange juice!

Looking at my blogs today Florida Homes for Sale as well as Florida Homes and Condos for Sale   I realized that the majority of web site visitors over the past week have been from places up north like

• Sharon, MA, 
• Chesapeake, VA (to us you are north!) 
• Rochester, NH, 
• Scarsdale, NY,  
• Halifax, Nova Scotia, 
• Hamburg, NJ 
• Memphis, TN (you are north too!), 
• Howell, NJ 

Well, you get the picture!   So, as you struggle to stay warm, you start thinking of warmer climates think about  moving to Brevard County, Florida. 

I know it is the winter and it will only be 65 tomorrow!

If gated, newer construction, golf course living is what you seek, consider making Fairway Lakes at Viera your next home.

Having shown homes for sale in Fairway Lakes at Viera a couple of weeks ago I can attest to the attractive opportunities for Florida golf course living near Brevard County's newest golf course – Duran Golf Club!

During 2010 there were six homes sold in the Fairway Lakes subdivision with an average selling price of $459,000.

Some of these were re-sales and about half were new construction.   As we speak there are several new construction homes underway by Christopher Burton Homes as well as Viera Builders.  I spoke with another builder this morning about acquiring lots for construction in Fairway Lakes at Viera so I am hopeful!

There are quite a few lots owned by Toll Brothers Builders but I think they are going to sit on them for now.  I tried unsuccessfully for several days to get an answer on any future construction by Toll Brothers in Viera. [If any Toll Brothers folks read this, let me know!]

If new construction is a consideration, let me know and I will gladly send you information on the lots available and the builder information. I can represent you with the builders - at no cost to you!

The year ended on a slow note as no homes were sold in November or December although six were actively on the market. One property did go under contract in December so it was not completely dead!

Of the six homes on the market there is one corporate relocation home listed for $389,900.  I viewed this 3 bedroom 3 bath 2 car garage home and found it very attractively priced for a golf course direct pool home!  The remaining homes are priced from about $465,000 to $749,000.

For information on homes for sale in Fairway Lakes at Viera, call me directly at 321-693-3850 or email me.

Gary L. Waters PLLC, Realtor ®, Century 21 Baytree Realty, Rockledge serving buyers and sellers in Brevard County, Florida.

Who has not heard the saying “Do as I say, not as I do?”  I am sure I heard that at some point I heard it as a child.

When you are ready to sell your house, there are things that need to be accomplished to ensure the best chance of selling.  Some of these actions include:

• Preparation – Fix any issues especially the easy items like blown light bulbs, that sticky door, the leaking faucet, etc.
  
• Clean – It goes without saying.
• De-clutter – Get rid of excess furniture, appliances, “stuff.”
• Curb Appeal – Lawn, a new coat of paint on the front door.
• Accommodate – Respond to showing requests and let buyer prospects have access within reason!
• Gather documents - Be prepared for the questions.Things like the association rules, average utility bills, any warranties, survey, deed, anything that may be needed.
  

I received a call yesterday from someone who just had "let" their Viera home for sale listing expire.  He had kept my card from a showing several months ago.

He asked me if I would consider listing his house for sale since the listing had expired.   I love to list homes for sale in Brevard County, especially in Viera, so I was ready to talk.

He asked about my feedback from the previous showing of his house months earlier. I told him it was simply the price was greater than the contenders in his neighborhood.

I stopped short of telling him I would not have shown it but my buyers really wanted to see it so they could compare other better priced houses in the neighborhood.

I then told him what I thought his house would sell for in the current Viera Florida market.

He said he would rather let it sit.

I wished home luck as I know the market will likely not rise in the near future - in Florida or elsewhere.  A buyer's market requires serious, motivated sellers as there are way too many homes on the market and so few buyers!

If your are serious about selling your house in 2011, you must price it to be a contender and not a pretender!

I, like most real estate agents today, have crossed paths with many people who seemed to be getting sucked into the short sale pipeline pipe dream. 

Buying a short sale is not for everyone.

First of all, that extremely low listing price is likely not the selling price but rather the "start talking price!"

Of course there is always the chance the low price may just be reflective of the later investment required to repair, fix, update and generally make the house "livable."  [However, that is more common with foreclosures!}

Short sales take time.  After all, the seller may sign off on your offer but in the end it must be approved by the lender(s).  And the lender approval process may take time – months!

A couple of additional tidbits of information on short sales (click the links):

• Difference between a short sale and a foreclosure 
• Is there such a thing as a perfect foreclosure? 
• REO and Foreclosures are not the same as short sales...

Still, if a buyer is the right buyer - the time, the patience, available cash/mortgage - why not consider a short sale?

For information on short sales in Viera, Florida, call me directly at 321-693-3850 or email me if you prefer.