.
Footnotes April 18th, 2013
April showers bring May flowers..Or in our case "Humidity" which leads me to this pretty photo.
This beach is about a 1.5 miles from a $325,000.00 home in a VERY desirable zipcode and it got me thinking "What can I buy in the 33133 at 325k that gets me this?"
Nada!
Which got me going on another topic which is on everyone's mind in Area 41 (That would be Grove, Gables, Brickell for you non Realtor's).
"Are we in another Housing Boom?"
Be back in a bit to answer this, for now I'm off to visit the High Line................
Ok I’m back, where was I?
Ah the Real Estate Boom in Area 41 and to emphasize this point; while enjoying my nice walk on the High Line, I got a call from a Seller who is going to list a property and requested that I list it for a WHOLE lot more then what we agreed to just a couple of weeks ago.
With all the talk of price increases and shortage of inventory, Sellers are over reaching (Remember, I look at future trends) and I can tell you already that Buyers are pulling back and looking elsewhere AND once they do, they realize that the values in the Grove and Gables are not making sense.
Just ask yourself, "would I pay this price for my home?"
Reminds me of an old cartoon that describes how you see your home (all perfect) and how others see it (all messed up)….or “what’s good for the goose is good for the gander”...
Another question I always get is “Jav, what will my place be worth in 10 years?
Which I reply “Why?”
“Because I want to know how much I will make when I sell it”, they usually answer.
“Nada” is my standard reply.
By now you know I hate the word “Investment” and “Personal Residence” used in the same sentence.
Every time I hear “Your home is your greatest investment”, I want to grab that stupid SOB and kick him in the “Pistachios”……but I can’t cause they are usually on TV or in the interwebs BUT this past week Robert Shiller of Case-Shiller report wrote a very good article that really sheds light on the topic.
So next time you ask me what is my place worth in 10 years…..
Reply?
"Same as it is now".....Unless......Next Post......
Got Real Estate on the Brain?
Give me a shout, I'm always around.
Jav
Can't get enough, follow me @GottaJavMiami
Footnotes March 17th, 2013
Happy St. Pats day and we don't speak "Gaelic"
Two New Listings that we featured in our Neighbors ad this month
26 W Sunrise Ave is a super clean 4/2 (with a possible 3rd) , down the street from a very popular kiddie park.
1421 Sorolla Ave is a nice 4/4 with pool/spa close to Granada golf course.
So what's on my mind for this post..........Hmm...Let's see?
Inventory Shortage????
"Wasn't that suppose to be the topic last post until you went off on a Syndication Rant that no one understood?"
Yup that would be correct....
"So why now, you have only been saying this for the last 9 months and only now are all the other Realtor's catching on and saying the same"
That would also be correct BUT when Realtor's start promising sale numbers that are impossible to get (and impossible to appraise), just to get the Listing well....I have a problem with that.
"Why, all they did was beat you for the listing and they do it all the time; sounds like sour grapes to me"
No Sour grapes and yes it's done all the time in our Gig but in this market it's also going to hurt a lot of folks.
"Why?"
I look at trends (other Realtor's feel free to jump on the bandwagon now) and Buyers WILL NOT pay the inflated list prices being offered by Listing Agents. The market is still in flux and can change in an instant and we are about to see that instant.
Seller's (with the blessing of their agents) are going to simply price themselves out of the market and Buyers (and lenders) will not support the increase by staying active......
So get ready for a lot of "DOM" and "Just Reduced" and "Are you f#$%^&* kidding with your list price?".
I'm planning a long vacation this Summer.....
Got Real Estate on the Brain?
Give me a shout I'm always around.
Jav
Can't get enough? Follow me @GottaJavMiami
Footnotes February 15th, 2013
"We speak Spanish"
We had some fun with this Ad about 2 Old Spanish homes that we have listed.
(we really have 5 but 3 are not ready yet....we're sneaky that way)
335 Sarto is a really cute 2/2 with a great deck.
3670 St. Gaudens is my Old Batcave and with a little TLC is REALLY sweet.
What Else?
Well every Realtor across the "305" is crying for listings....hell even the NY Times is drumming up the noise and they are in the 212!
Be back in a few....need to update something for this post.
OK I'm back.
Changed my mind about post, everyone has written about the available home inventory shortage and "how you can get top dollar" and "that we can sell it in a day" and Blah, Blah....Truth is if you have a nice home you will sell it at a small premium and if you live on a highway....you won't.
OK, this post is for all the Realtor's who read this blog (and you know who you are) AND for any Clients who want to learn some of the in's and out's of our Gig.
Dear Realtor's, you have worked REALLY hard for your listings and you are protective of them BUT do you really know where they end up once you put them on the MLS?
You may think you do.....but Really you don't.
"Jav" you say, "I don't Syndicate my listings on the MLS, I ALWAYS enter NO to Internets, that way my listings stay off 3rd party sites like Trulia or Zillow".
And I say.....Not a Chance!
I have been Researching our lovely MLS syndication process and the more I find the more I realize that something is WAY wrong with how our listings are managed and distributed. I will bet any Realtor that even though you put "N" on the internet, your property is on a syndicated site.
Don't believe me?
Until a couple of days ago, one of our main MLS providers of syndication acknowledged that they and I quote;
"Our technical team managed to find another listing in the feed which was set not to syndicate. For whatever reason, the importer was not originally setup for that field. We have updated the importer to respect field 114 (Internet).
My sincerest apologies."
That meant that even though we we're saying No, someone else was saying Yes (sounds like some of my old dates).
And dear Realtor's you should REALLY look at where some of your Hard work goes to...some sites are just there to get your contact info and then sell you all sorts of crap.
It get's better, listing Syndicators' have even "overwritten" your publishing choices, don't know what a publisher is?
Want to learn more?
I'm teaching a Class at RA/MAX this coming week, let me know if you want to join.
UPDATE 2/24/12;
Wish me luck as I try an improve the way your listings are represented on the "Interwebs" and managed by your MLS board; I have a meeting tomorrow with the big wigs at the board.....let's see what they really know......
J
Got Real Estate on the Brain?
Give me a shout, I'm always around.
Jav
Can't get enough? Follow me @GottaJavMiami
Footnotes January 31st, 2013
One month down in 2013 and the 2012 results are in.
So what are they?
Same as they have been for the last few years.
Prices moving up, inventory going down and Cash is still King....gee what a surprise!
How much longer do we have of this trend?
What I'm seeing is Sellers (convinced of low inventory reports), think they can price out of the "their" current Market (and Listing Agents starved for listings are agreeing to Seller asking price; Hell I recently saw a listing increase 100k from the time saw it privately till it hit the MLS) and Buyers are still dealing with "Sticker shock" (and delayed appraisal values) are having trouble pulling the trigger on deals.
Outcome?
Time will tell who blinks first but with rates still low and Buyers moving from rising rentals, it does look like we are trending towards Sellers in certain segments. I have always been a big believer that Rent prices dictate Buyers decision to move into the Sale Market and right now rising Rents have made entry level Buyers very competitive for limited inventory, while mid level entry and up buys are still holding out.
Don't agree?
Just look at new permit applications for remodels/expansions, positive returns for local and national Home improvement retailers......also try and find a good Handy man.
Welcome to 1995!
What Else?
Be back with a Midtown story....OK I'm back.
Lot's of local Grove Real Estate news lately, with the sale of the Coconut Grove bank parcel, to the sale of the Sunshine Fruit company but I got to look north this week and see how things are doing in Midtown. Why? Because I can.
Looks like all the best laid plans of mice and men are not working out for investors, speculators & Robbins.....
Some time ago, folks were all hopped up about the high end retail bailing on Bal Harbour (let's not forget Walmart) to be the save all of the Midtown/Design District and all the usual suspects were clamoring that Midtown was about to zoom.......then something funny happened.
The folks who own Bal Harbour had a stroke of brilliance (not really, call it more a stroke of necessity), decide to dump years of stringent expansion restrictions for their retailers and said "Hey if you can't beat them, beat them" and I think they did by signing up with Swire's CityCentre project.
This could be a huge game changer in the Brickell market.
What's that sound I hear? Must be the trains leaving the Midtown station........(more on this another day)
Got Real Estate on the mind?
Give me a shout, I'm always around.
Jav
Can't get enough, follow me @GottaJavMiami
Footnotes January 16th, 2013
In your Mail Box, for the first time!
If you find this in your Mail Box this week, please DO two things for me:
One; Turn it over and read the back.
Two; Keep it for a couple of days.....they are VERY expensive.
BTW; you will be getting one every month, so stay tune as we will update them monthly.
Oh and we have a Sunday Neighbors Ad this week featuring a couple of Homes that we will have Open;
From 12:30-2:30pm
10360 SW 58ct
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WAVE TO THE LITTLE ONES AS THEY WALK TO PINECREST ELEMENTARY. THIS SPACIOUS (3400 SQ FT) NEWLY UPDATED 5BED/3BATH HOME HAS ALL THE FIXINS' (FIXINS? REALLY WE SAID THAT?) OK WE HAVE VAULTED CEILINGS, HIGH IMPACT WINDOWS & DOORS, UPDATED OPEN KITCHEN, BAR AND FAMILY ROOM MAKE FOR A GREAT GATHERING SPACE AND ALSO OPENS TO LARGE SCREENED PATIO. HEATED POOL, GENERATOR, PLUS LARGE YARD/GARDEN COMPLETE THIS COMFORTABLE HOME..OH & DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT THE CLOSET IN THE MASTER.
OFFERED AT 1,199,000
And from 3-5pm
3801 CRAWFORD AVE
STUNNING WEST INDIE POOL HOME IN SOUTH GROVE AWAITS THE MOST SOPHISTICATED BUYER. HOME WAS BUILT IN 08' TO THE FINEST STANDARDS & COMPLEMENTED BY THE CURRENT OWNERS PERSONAL TOUCHES. FROM THE MOMENT YOU STEP IN YOU WILL FEEL THAT THIS IS IT, YOU HAVE ARRIVED. GENEROUS LIVING SPACES DOWNSTAIRS AND 4 BEDROOMS UP WITH A MASTER SUITE THAT WILL TAKE YOUR BREATH AWAY OFFERING HIS/HER'S FULL BATHS (HER'S IS WAY NICER). OUTSIDE IS AN ENTERTAINERS DREAM WITH BUILD IN BBQ, POOL/SPA & COVERED TERRACE. THIS IS IT!
OFFERED AT 1,699,000
What else?
Following up on the previous Footnotes, I had several folks ask me;
"Jav so what is the Grove selling at per square foot and hows the market doing"
By now if you know me, you know that I do not get caught up in any statistical data, as I can make "stats" say what I want them to say BUT I do believe in trends.
Huh, Aren't they the same?
Not in my view, I treat stats as past history; what happened several months ago has very little bearing on what is going to happen tomorrow. (This is my ongoing argument with appraisers and market forecasters).
I follow trends and by this I mean what I see everyday on the street. I get a feel for where the market is moving from speaking with Sellers, Buyers, Agents and then work to anticipate the "Market".
At the end, this is not a "math test", you are either Selling or Buying a home and everyday is different.
Want to know where the market is?
Call me, it changes everyday.
Got Real Estate on your mind?
Give me a shout, I'm always around.
Jav
Can't get enough?
You can also follow along on twitter @GottaJavMiami or read the "Greatest Real Estate Story Ever!"
FOOTNOTES DECEMBER 30TH 2012
This past year was full of "Special" deals from dead neighbors encroaching to impossible Short Sales and my favorite "I won't pay that", "Oh Yes you will" that I asked my clients to give us a one word review on our efforts.
We had lots of replies (Thank you all for participating) but three words came up most often......"leave us alone"
No, it was not.
The three words were:
Knowledgeable, Resourceful and Dedicated
We really work hard for our clients and it was really appreciated to be recognized for our efforts.
Enough sappy stuff, On to Footnotes!
This time of year everyone that I know from Old ladies in the supermarket.....Hey that reminds me of a great story.
Couple of years ago my MIL asked me to get her 40 ripe plantains so that she could make "Fufu". Now the only place to acquire said plantains is by leaving the country and going to "Sedanos" Supermarket. Well like a good son in law (SIL), off I went (with passport) and purchased the plantains. While choosing a line I went to the "express" lane and once there my cart was tapped several times by an old Cuban lady's cart...as to get my attention and she did.
She looked at me, looked at my cart and said "You have more then ten items in your cart", which I replied "No Senora, I have one item forty times"....she has not been the same since.
OK were was I, Oh yeah this time of year everyone from said old lady to fellow Realtor's ask me the same question "Jav, what do you see coming in the next year?"
My reply is always the same.....
"Well first thing is I'm a year older (Happy Birthday to me), second is what to you mean?"
"You know, where do you see the market heading"
Funny tidbit; in 2005 I took a picture for a print AD with me, a balloon and a pin....and no one got the AD.
2013 is all about the THE FISCAL CLIFF!!!!!!!!!!!!..........unless they solve it by later today, which they won't......because they want to be seen as "lowering" taxes. Ahh, we get the Representatives/Senator's we deserve....So.............
Real Estate in 2013; same as always..."it will go up, it will go down, it will stay the same"
Sellers; Sell because you can or need to.
Buyers; Buy because you can or need to.
Renters; Rent because you parents tossed you from their home....and just reminder..
A home is not an investment, It's where you "live"....So Live.
Got Real Estate on your mind in 2013?
Give me a shout, I'm always around
Jav
Can't get enough?
You can also follow along on twitter @GottaJavMiami or read the "Greatest Real Estate Story Ever!"
